"Master, I'm going in."
At this moment, Akitsu had awakened the immense power hidden within her body. A faint glow emanated from her entire being, matching her icy blue eyes.
Countless snowflakes danced around her, and her cherry-blossom-colored short hair floated in the air. This picturesque scene made her look like a peerless queen of ice and snow.
Sora let go of Akitsu and did not stop her. A smile tugged at the corner of his lips—one of his goals had been achieved!
"Master, are you alright?"
As soon as Akitsu left, Hikari and Hibiki quickly rushed over to support Sora. Seeing the long wound on his chest, they were almost moved to tears.
Although they knew that Sora had done this to push Akitsu into awakening her power, they couldn't help but feel anxious deep down. They were also furious at the three women from the Chiyo family for hurting Sora. If Sora hadn't forbidden them from acting, they would have already unleashed a thunderous attack!
"Hehe, if you really care about me, you'll help your master out again later."
With a mischievous smile, Sora, in high spirits, couldn't resist teasing the two girls.
The wound had been temporarily sealed by Akitsu's ice ability, but leaving it like this for too long could cause problems. Tearing off the ice layer, Sora activated his life force, and the gruesome wound began to heal at a visible rate.
As they gently touched his now fully healed chest, the two girls sighed in relief. However, the thought of being teased by their master again made their cheeks flush with embarrassment.
"Alright, we'll deal with that later. For now, let's get out of here quickly. Akitsu's anger seems to be quite intense!"
Feeling the rapidly dropping temperature around them, Sora spoke to Hikari and Hibiki.
Akitsu was now many times stronger than before. If they stayed too close, even the powerful Sora, Hikari, and Hibiki might be affected!
Exchanging a glance, the three of them vanished in an instant.
"By the ice of my vow, I shall freeze the calamity of the Ashikabi… Freeze!!!"
Walking toward the three women from the Sanada gang, Akitsu chanted an ancient incantation, slowly raising a delicate hand toward the sky.
"Hey, Yuna, am I seeing things? Did this girl just undergo winging?"
As if unable to believe what she was seeing, Chiyo pinched Yuna's waist.
"You're not seeing things. I saw it too—she really did undergo winging!"
As she spoke, Yuna also pinched Chiyo's waist.
Exchanging a glance, the two women saw extreme shock and disbelief in each other's eyes.
"Ugh, why is it getting colder? Huh, what's this? Snow?"
Hatae's voice came from the side. The three women looked up and realized that the once clear sky was now filled with white snowflakes.
Unlike ordinary snowflakes, these were enormous, each one as large as a palm!
The intricate patterns on each snowflake were clearly visible, crystal clear and translucent, making it seem as if they weren't snowflakes but beautiful works of art!
The scene was both beautiful and poetic, and even the battle-hungry, bloodthirsty Chiyo women were captivated, forgetting the cold entirely…
"Idiots, it's dangerous! Run!!!"
Suddenly, an extremely anxious voice came from afar, snapping the three women out of their trance.
Looking back, they saw their Ashikabi, Sanada Nishiki!
Sanada Nishiki had sensed something was wrong the moment Akitsu underwent winging. When Akitsu began chanting the incantation and a snowflake fell beside him, he was utterly shocked by what he saw!
"This is bad! Retreat!!"
When they saw the massive ice spikes near Sanada Nishiki, the three Chiyo women's faces also showed horror. Finally snapping out of it, they looked at Akitsu, who was now standing not far in front of them, as if she were a monster.
"Too late… Ice Erosion!"
The hand raised to the sky came down, and the snowflakes dancing in the air seemed to come to life, spinning and transforming into countless razor-sharp snowflake shurikens. They rained down with overwhelming speed, covering the sky as they hurtled toward the three women!
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!!!
The deafening explosions shook the earth. Each snowflake shuriken that hit the ground was like a bomb.
Moreover, upon contact with any object, these snowflakes would instantly explode, turning into countless massive ice spikes that froze and pierced everything around them!
"We're done for…"
The three women from the Chiyo gang continuously dodged, their weapons turning into blurs as they deflected the incoming ice spikes one after another.
However, the overwhelming snowstorm was far beyond their ability to withstand! Before long, their figures were completely submerged in a sea of ice and snow…
"My body, my strength, my soul—they all belong to my master. Those who dare harm my master, Akitsu will never forgive!"
A faint smile appeared on Akitsu's face as the overwhelming aura around her receded like a tide. Like a kite with its string cut, her body fell straight toward the ground.
Akitsu's body had long reached its limit. If it weren't for the "Blessing" that Sora had planted within her before leaving, her body would have already collapsed!
However, she didn't hit the ground. Instead, she fell into a warm embrace.
"Master…"
Opening he eyes and seeing Sora's ever-present smile, the girl felt as if the unyielding ice in her heart had melted.
"You did well, Akitsu!"
He gently kissed her forehead as a reward for her efforts.
"Those three… they didn't die, did they?"
Behind Sora, Hikari and Hibiki were staring in utter shock at the enormous forest of ice spikes before them, their voices filled with disbelief.
At the center of the countless ice spikes, they could vaguely make out three figures encased in ice pillars—Chiyo, Yuna, and Hatae!
Exchanging a glance, Hikari and Hibiki realized that even they wouldn't be able to survive such a terrifying attack!
"Don't worry, those three Sekireis are no ordinary fighters. Although Akitsu dealt them a heavy blow and their functions have stopped, they're still alive."
"Besides, they're going to become your master's little maids. How could I let them die so easily?"
A ball of flame appeared in the air, constantly shifting and condensing until it took on Sora's form.
"Fire Clone, go and get them out."
While holding Akitsu, Sora gave the order to his clone.
"Understood!"
Nodding, the Fire Clone gathered flames in its hands and pressed them against the massive ice spikes. Before long, a passageway appeared.
Although they were unhappy with the three who had harmed their master, now that their functions had stopped and they would soon become their sisters, Hikari and Hibiki hesitated for a moment before finally going over to help.
"I can't take it anymore! That discarded Sekirei has gone berserk! Even Hatae and the others were taken out!"
"Better to live and fight another day. I should get out of here fast!"
"Yeah, I'll go find my little darlings and then make a quick escape. I don't want to stay here any longer!"
Sanada Nishiki was a man of action. Seeing that his side had already lost, he didn't hesitate to prepare to make a run for it.
However, just then—
"Yo, Sanada Nishiki, giving up so soon?"
A teasing voice rang out. Before he knew it, Sora, holding Akitsu, had appeared in front of him.
A cold sweat broke out on Sanada Nishiki's forehead, and he felt the urge to curse.
Giving up? Give up my ass! Who in their right mind would want to play around in front of a freak like you!
But as a seasoned scoundrel, Sanada Nishiki deeply understood one thing: when the other guy is the boss, even if you hate him to the core, you have to play the part of the humble servant.
"Ha… haha… I was just going to check on how my little darlings are doing!"
Scratching the back of his head, Sanada Nishiki came up with the lamest excuse possible.
Sora's face twitched as he stared at this ultimate idiot. He thought to himself, Thank goodness this guy's just a scoundrel. If he were a cultured scoundrel, he wouldn't be so easy to deal with.
"Ahem, you mean Kusa and the others? Look, they're right over there."
Calming his emotions, Sora pointed to the side.
Sanada Nishiki followed the direction and immediately saw something that made him want to die.
"Hahaha, this is so fun!"
"Wow, swinging on the swings!"
"Kusa, faster, faster!"
…
There, Sora's little blonde-haired loli was holding a small potted plant. From the pot, several vines had grown out, tightly wrapping around Sanada Nishiki's three little lolis—gold, silver, and black. The vines were like flexible tentacles, swinging the three lolis back and forth in the air.
A gentle breeze blew past, and with a snot bubble hanging from his nose, Sanada Nishiki suddenly felt like his life was a tragedy…
Why were his Sekireis either bloodthirsty, battle-crazed lunatics or little airheads who would happily count money for the person who sold them out?!
"Bro, look on the bright side. Those kids are so cute and pure. You hit the jackpot!"
Patting Sanada Nishiki on the shoulder, Sora put on an "envious" expression.
Biting his sleeve, Sanada Nishiki swallowed his tears.
"Sanada Nishiki, you know how this works. In the end, only one Ashikabi and his Sekireis will remain."
"So, what do you think I should do next?"
With a sly smile, Sora decided to stop teasing the poor guy and instead hinted at what was to come.
"Sigh… You're strong, and my little darlings are unreliable. But if I don't even have the courage to face you, then I'm not a man!"
His face turning serious, Sanada Nishiki seemed to realize what was coming. A faint glow emanated from his body as he took a stance, ready to face Sora head-on.
"Although you're very weak compared to me, you're still much stronger than those other useless Ashikabi!" Sensing the aura around Sanada Nishiki, Sora didn't hold back his praise.
"Haha, to receive praise from the King of Sekireis, I feel truly honored."
With a bitter smile, Sanada Nishiki knew the gap between them. No matter how he struggled, the outcome was already decided.
"Actually, I already have many Sekireis—strong ones, beautiful ones. Your three little Sekireis are pretty much insignificant to me."
"And letting you go isn't entirely impossible…"
Seeing the sudden spark of hope in Sanada Nishiki's eyes, Sora's lips curled into a mysterious smile…