Will You Be Alright?
"Will you be alright?"
The deep, resonant voice of the middle-aged man who had been conversing with the branch chief until moments ago echoed through the air. What was astonishing was that the voice emerged not from within the mask, but from the muzzle of the red horse clad in battle armor.
"The opponent is S-rank or higher."
The masked warrior nodded quietly.
"...Yeah."
A woman's voice, soft and faltering, almost a whisper. Yet the veins bulged on both hands gripping the shaft of the crescent blade.
"The enemy wields mana exceeding that of the black scorpion. If it's lurking in the ocean depths, even I couldn't—"
"It's in the sky."
The woman's voice cut off Red Hare's words with unwavering certainty.
"The enemy is in the sky."
Her eyes, fixed unyieldingly in one direction, gleamed with a blue light.
"Impressive. You've already located it?"
"No. I felt it."
"I see. The sea would be trouble, but—"
Red Hare snorted, accelerating with even greater vigor.
"Anywhere one can run, no place exists that this Red Hare cannot tread—!"
Red Hare's battle armor began to glow red. Its speed surpassed even the pace it had maintained while galloping through the skies moments before, charging straight toward the enigmatic foe with its rider.
"...Hoo."
The woman steadied her breath, lowering the blade of her crescent sword to the right. As they sliced through the wind, an intensifying scorching heat pressed in. It felt as if they were flying toward the sun itself—the stifling blaze threatened to incinerate her entire body.
"...Heh, heh."
The fiercer it grew, the more worthy an adversary it promised to be. Though she walked this land in a woman's form, from the moment she awakened as a hero, she had transcended gender, nation—nay, even species—to become a true warrior.
"Come... show yourself...!"
The War God struggled to calm her boiling blood, scanning the lingering traces of mana scattered in the air. That intense power, concealed yet impossible to hide. The mere resonance scorched her brain like fire.
A monster? Or a villain masquerading as one? Or both? The foe wasn't visible yet.
No choice but to draw it out.
"Haaa—"
She drew in a deep breath, gathering her mana. If the coward hid to avoid battle, she would force it to reveal itself.
Crackle, hiss.
Infusing mana into her eyes to enhance her vision. Amid the vast flows of residual mana in her sight—
There.
Dead ahead. A being cloaked in wings of blue flame. Hidden within a shimmering halo of light, but its heat was unmistakable.
Strike first, ask later.
Mana flowed across the surface of the crescent blade in her grasp. A massive slash, infused with power, launched from the moon-like edge. With a brief charge, the slash would compel the foe to reveal its true form—
Whoosh.
A blistering heat singed the hair dangling beneath her mask. The War God swiftly wheeled her mount toward the source of the mana.
Roooar—!
Vast mana erupted like an explosion in the skies above. There, a colossal bird of flame unfurled its wings.
A sight straight out of legend—a phoenix. Its mere presence pricked the skin with heat, halting even Red Hare's gallop.
"......."
And at its center floated a girl with blue hair.
"......Will you fight?"
Red Hare pawed the air, twisting its neck warily. Tension laced its voice, unlike any battle they'd shared before.
"Yes."
The War God nodded in response.
Red Hare stamped the air with a hoof, smirking.
"You two are cut from the same cloth—both battle-mad."
"You're no different."
"True enough!"
The War God kicked Red Hare's flank, gripping the shaft firmly.
"If the foe is a villain!"
"We won't yield!"
Red Hare charged toward the blue-haired girl.
* * *
Fast.
The enemy and trails of green energy streaked past, the crescent blade slicing for my throat in the same instant.
Clang!
My mana shield clashed with the blade. Packed with immense mana, it held firm—but the slashes didn't end there.
Clang! Clang!
A strike to the back, and in a blink, the side. A 0.1-second misjudgment, and that gleaming edge would cleave me apart.
Of all people, Unjang.
Unjang—the War God from the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, embodied by this ability user.
China's strongest right from the opener.
True to her name and motif, Unjang dominated the skies with overwhelming speed, her mount the battle steed Red Hare enabling a mere human to race the heavens.
Clang!
Red Hare's hoof aimed to crush my skull. I reached to incinerate it, but it slipped away effortlessly.
"Too slow!"
"......That."
Cheeky taunt. No matter their human-horse unity, challenging Phoenix's speed was like a grub critiquing wrinkles.
Let's see you keep up.
With my shield up, no harm could come. I retracted it to skim my skin, spread my wings, and pursued Red Hare.
"Chasing already?!"
Red Hare's startled whinny carried clearly. Unjang held her breath—I could hear it vividly.
Never been caught by speed before!
I flapped my wings wide once. The mana jetting from behind rocketed me forward, closing in on Red Hare's tail.
"Red Hare!"
In that instant, Unjang yanked the reins. Red energy surged from Red Hare.
"Tch!"
I banked my wings sharply upward. Red Hare, trailing crimson mana, pivoted three times faster than before, charging me head-on.
Slash!
"Ngh!"
Unjang's crescent blade flashed. Infused with blue mana, it sheared my right wing horizontally.
"......Heh."
Laughter from beneath the mask—mocking me. I grinned back at Unjang.
Tremble.
The severed wing's feathers quivered. Horror filled the green eyes behind the red mask.
"Boom."
I clapped playfully, and each feather detonated in chain reaction.
Kaboom—!!
The massive mana blast engulfed Unjang and Red Hare. Horse and rider plummeted vertically toward the sea, Red Hare barely arresting their fall just before impact.
"Tch. Close."
I'd held back, trusting my shield. Should've gone full force.
Scared of my power, so I dialed it down.
She knew theoretically, but feeling it firsthand? Terrifying.
Phoenix's power manifested as incineration and explosion. I'd primed my wing pre-slice; Unjang's cut triggered it unknowingly.
"Cough, cough!"
Unjang hacked roughly. Not devastating, but devastating for her low mana reserves.
Superb control, but pathetically low total mana.
That chronic flaw kept China's strongest, Round Table's 12 Heroes member Unjang Xiao Lin from SS-rank humanity's pinnacle.
Her heroine route overcomes that.
No secret here. The Guan Yu cosplayer glaring up, burning with resolve, was one of 16 main heroines.
"Usually, the opener's a combat probe, but..."
Did she hear? She must have—infused with mana, her senses would've caught it.
"Gauging your power firsthand? Not a bad idea."
"......Insolent wretch!"
Unjang's mana surged wildly. Red Hare snorted, exploding mana in response.
Hook, line, and sinker.
Her ironclad pride in her prowess couldn't tolerate anyone above, looking down.
A bit early.
But this is her limit now.
Post-protagonist event and "awakening," maybe. Now? Just a hero at her ceiling.
Until she sheds Unjang's shell for true War God, she can't topple me.
Fwoosh.
Flames bloomed from the wound, feathers regrowing.
"Regeneration too?!"
Red Hare's shocked yelp. Not true regen, but no need to correct.
I spread my wings wide, flaunting vitality.
Fwoooosh!
"Urk!"
The mere flap unleashed a mana storm, drawing a groan from Xiao Lin.
"Strong...! But I can definitely cut—"
With my small cry, countless fire orbs formed beneath my wings.
"Usually, those track like missiles," Red Hare grumbled through gritted teeth. I smirked.
"Correct!"
Thwack!
Like baseballs off a bat, I smashed the fire orbs with my wings.
"Damn!"
Eight orbs total. Each blazed like missiles, tracing paths toward Xiao Lin.
"Fast!"
Red Hare unleashed speed again, but the orbs matched pace.
"I'll intercept!"
Xiao Lin spun her crescent blade, slashing orbs at point-blank.
BOOM!!
The blast shook Red Hare's legs momentarily, but it recovered, charging on.
Boom!
Another orb slashed aside; Xiao Lin leveled her blade, deflecting a third with the flat.
Boom! Bang!
Deflected orb collided with incoming ones, self-detonating. Four remained.
"All at once!"
Blue mana gathered on Xiao Lin's blade anew. Zigzagging Red Hare straightened; orbs converged.
She unleashed her slash at the perfect moment.
"Haat—!"
———Slash!!
Four orbs erupted simultaneously in a massive blast—bomb-level spectacle.
Hummm—!
Xiao Lin spun her blade amid the explosion, deflecting the blast with wind pressure, eyes blazing as she gripped tight.
"My, still think you can win?"
"......No defeat for a War God."
"Puhuhu, then shall I humble that arrogant streak!"
Fwoosh.
Flames ignited in each hand. I hurled the fire orbs like pitches.
Whoosh—Boom!
The orb blocked Red Hare's path, exploding. Blue flames burst, white smoke billowing.
"Tch."
I regrew my wings, soaring higher.
Pop!
Parting the smoke, Unjang emerged. She'd focused on intercepts, leaving maneuvers to Red Hare.
"One more."
Another orb toward their path.
"Hee—heh?!"
Anticipating, Red Hare zigzagged vertically, dodging.
"Aw."
"Stop playing!"
"Then let's get serious?"
Pop.
Dozens of fire orbs materialized in a blink. The spectacle stunned horse and rider—they froze, staring up.
"Ah...."
Terror laced Xiao Lin's quavering voice.
A whistle escaped me. I grinned refreshingly.
"You told me not to play."
Fwoosh, fwoosh.
Orbs self-replicated: double, quadruple, eightfold. Smaller, but each packed prior destructive force.
"Wh...what...."
Even Red Hare gaped, speechless. I almost quipped, but held back.
Now I get why villains monologue.
Moment of empathy for that final boss raining meteors on grunts.
Clop, clop!
Xiao Lin trembled blankly; Red Hare instinctively fled full-tilt toward China.
"Hey, just running off like that?"
Fleeing, really—but for pride's sake, I readied orbs silently.
Main heroine, no intent to kill or maim.
Just tiny payback for her route's torments. No grudge whatsoever.
Now, to launch... Huh?
Unpleasant mana prickled from Xiao Lin's escape direction. Instinct-chilling dread. Something rocketed toward us fast.
Something's incoming—super fast.
I extinguished vision-blocking orbs, watched it streak past Xiao Lin, and blinked.
...?
Iron stake? Drill? Whatever hurtled at me blanked my mind.
Missile?
Fired a missile? Now? At me? From where?
Block fir—
Kagang!!
"Pfft!"
The missile's tip pierced my gut. Shield spared pain, but momentum dragged me along its path.
"Sh...it...."
Stopping risked detonation. Dodging might crater the Korean sea.
This sparking Sino-Korean war on me?
They'd spin it as pretext regardless.
Detonate here.
I scattered mana from my core, azure flames snaking along the missile like serpents.
Trust the shield... blow it!
No need for fallout. As flames crushed the casing, I fortified my whole-body shield.
Now—
Kaboom!!
The missile succumbed, erupting massively. Azure flames devoured most, but shockwaves hammered my shield.
"Eek?!"
I bounced airborne shield-and-all, plummeting seaward.
Missile to the gut not even 30 minutes in...
Absurdity bordered laughter. Missile-lobbing fool, Phoenix's casual mana-block—hilarious power.
Ridiculous.
Gurgle.
I plunged straight into the ocean depths.