Not knowing when she went to sleep, Empty opened her eyes to find Ikari by the window of the living room, closing and opening his right hand.
"Are you...okay?"
As Empty timidly asked, Ikari nodded, looking back at her from where he stood with a smile – still not a genuine one.
"Yes, there seem to be no problems."
"That's a relief…"
Empty sincerely felt relieved from the bottom of her heart.
The pain had subsided, and, naturally, he was ready for another round, but before that… 'I should take a bath,' Ikari thought.
"I'm going to take a shower."
"Eh? Ah, okay? Should I prepare a new set of clothes for you?"
"No. I'll do it myself."
Hearing that, Empty seemed to sulk, her expression turning sad. She had barely had the chance to help him, after all.
Seeing this, Ikari let out a sigh, patting her head.
"The time to help isn't just here yet, and best believe when that time comes, you'll regret it."
Saying that cryptically, he left for one of the rooms in the house. As he did, he could tell the girl was happy by that, and then came her voice.
"I'm going to make coffee then."
"Add three pieces of sugar for mine."
Sooner or later, after Ikari was done, Empty took her own turn. Since clothes were woven by reiryoku, it could also be dispersed.
Even things like drying hair and the rest all could be done with reiryoku.
After waiting not for long, Empty also came out and joined him at the dining table.
Though both didn't need to eat anymore, it was more of a way to satisfy themselves, and oddly, Empty noticed Ikari seemed to be deep in thought.
"Ikari-san? Anything wrong…?"
"No. Being here just reminded me of back home. During high school, we both decided to live alone, and every morning was just like this; additionally, she would also join us every morning."
His gaze looked incredibly sad and lonely, even though he didn't appear particularly sad.
"By the way, what was Ikari-san like in the other world?"
"How was I, huh?"
If he were to say nothing special, then it'd be a lie. After all, as far as he remembered, he came from a well-off family.
He and his sister would be the type to have been called "young master" and "young mistress."
Additionally, he remembered being extremely close to her. So close that their parents were worried for them. Their level of closeness scared their parents that much.
From there, both were separated by their parents taking them to all-male and all-female schools, respectively.
Additionally, he alone had to take extra lessons.
Though his parents knew this alone wouldn't be enough to keep them separated, and if anything, things just went further for both of them.
Of course, that would be when she, his sister, would befriend her friend.
"Well, we were quite adventurous."
Especially after entering high school. Both started living alone, much to their parents' worries.
Though while it may have seemed like it would escalate, he was quite the gentleman, going as far as rejecting "their" advances.
Well, quite because of many reasons.
Most specifically: Deus.
He didn't know when it happened. All he knew was that one day he just happened to know. About Deus, Spirit, and… what lay beyond their encounter.
All that, his memories after stopping Deus's plan cut. They in his memories now became blurry.
Other than that set of information he knew generally, he couldn't recall anything further.
"It's pointless to continue further; let's head out."
Empty took a long drag as she watched him before slowly letting out a nod.
"...Alright."
She said that, however, before heading out, Empty tidied up the table.
While it was a house that no one used, Empty believed it was still necessary to have the bare minimum of proper etiquette.
Ikari forced a smile while waiting for her.
"I've kept you waiting, Ikari-san, now─"
That sound was very loud. Moreover, it was the sort that would be heard daily.
Ding dong, it's such a brisk electronic sound. But it was not a sound that should have rung.
Hearing that, Empty immediately positioned herself behind Ikari, who went closer to the door, opening it.
"..."
A single girl guarded in silence. On her back was a long halberd. Her Extreme Death Spirit Dress, Number 15
"So, you came…"
"The sound of the shower. The odor of reiryoku can be deceived, but it is impossible to falsify pure sound."
Empty couldn't suppress the shudders caused by Tsuan's words. The sound of a faint shower in a closed home. How could she even hear that?
"Well, you just meet those types sometimes. I also had a feeling I'd eventually have to face you."
Tsuan let out a slow nod, still levelling her gaze at Ikari's.
"The other two decided to go for Proxy; they have also informed me about everything."
Ikari blinked, and Empty slowly peered out her head to look at Tsuan. But the moment she did, receiving a stern gaze from the infamous girl, Empty hid behind him again.
"Hii, w-why are you glaring at me?"
As Empty became frightened, Tsuan's expression soon turned apologetic.
"Sorry, it wasn't meant to be done consciously."
"Then. What is it? Do you want to fight Dominion together…?"
"Out of the question."
Tsuan flatly rejected Ikari's question before slowly raising a finger to point at him. Her target was him, huh?
It was highly possible she let those two off just to face him, huh? Well, it didn't matter.
"I-Ikari-san! Be careful! That person will likely plot against from behind."
At such words, Ikari raised an eyebrow; Tsuan too did the same, but they simply ignored her like they had come to an agreement.
"So, where's the location?"
Tsuan asked. It seemed that she didn't have any preference for where the duel would occur.
"A little further from here would do."
Tsuan nodded back in response.
Against the dazzling sun, Empty narrowed her eyes. Ikari walked in front with Tsuan following him and Empty trailing from the end.
Ikari suddenly stopped walking. The duel was in the middle of a residential area as Empty tried to hide behind a telephone pole.
"You... What do you think you're doing?"
Ikari looked to the top of the pole that Empty was hiding behind.
As Empty looked towards the sky, she saw that one of Doll Master's puppets was hanging on the top of the pole.
"No, no──. Just watching; please don't mind."
Without looking back, Tsuan, with a somewhat annoyed expression, casually grabbed the halberd axe on her back and swung it vertically into the sky.
The telephone pole and doll shattered.
Just as the name Biscuit Smasher would suggest, it was pulverised into tiny pieces. The broken doll's head rolled towards Empty, who let out a "fugyaa" scream.
"In the way."
Tsuan glared at the empty space.
Perhaps they were hidden through some form of optical camouflage, but several dolls appeared in fear and fled in a panic.
"Would you look at that?"
"They appeared anyway…"
While responding to Ikari's words, Tsuan suddenly stopped talking as she was replying back.
To say she stopped replying might not be the right way to put this. But,
She gripped her halberd axe and swung it towards Ikari, who met the halberd axe with a weapon of his own.
It wasn't
Tsuan, after initiating the clash, with her strength began to push back against him.
"That weapon that caused that destruction. Demon King… Use it."
"No thanks; I too want to enjoy this battle after all."
Saying that, Tsuan, who was already gaining on him, was suddenly pushed away, flying back.
As she was sent flying back, flames wrapped Ikari as he blitzed towards her, clashing again with her, while Tsuan was still sent back.
They eventually collided against a fence of a house, but due to their momentum, they destroyed it, crashing into the house and even further than that.
Managing to land her feet on the ground, skidding against the ground, she slightly tilted her halberd axe, causing Ikari's weapon to slide out from the body of her weapon.
Then with a spin kick, she kicked him flying away.
She repeated.
Kicking the ground, she dashed towards him, and from there, constant clashes resounded.
Buildings couldn't hold their clash as they either got pulverised or annihilated by flames.
Occasionally, sounds like,
THUD!
BOOM!
BAM!
Would resound, which had attracted most other quasi-spirits who watched from afar.
Once more, Tsuan was sent into a building by Ikari, who slowly walked into said building whose front had been utterly destroyed.
"...."
Entering the house, Ikari looked left and right; however, nothing. Then, suddenly, "....!" He looked up, and then–BOOM!
Tsuan descended from the second floor, hitting his flaming sword, which blocked her halberd axe; however, Ikari's legs sank into the ground.
'She's able to match my flame-cloaked state.'
Even though it wasn't all the power he could dish out. She could match the safe metre of which he could exert his powers without receiving backlash.
As such, a smile made its way to his face.
"Okay, this is starting to get interesting."
"I feel the same. Ikari."
They both replied, and then for a moment, both withdrew slightly. The world seemed to slow down for a moment. But, all of a sudden, the air grew heavier, and then, BOOM!
A thunderous sound resounded, and what happened this time…
Both of them had become a blur, transforming into trails of blue and red as they danced around the abandoned city of Malkuth.
They would crash into buildings, clash, separate, run around, clash, stop and then,
CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!
At high speeds, whenever they clashed, they then started relentlessly slashing at each other. Attack. Defend. Counter. Reverse counter.
Neither of them could afford to be distracted.
Rather, it could be said that if anyone interrupted this current flow. They'd no doubt incur the wrath of these two.
──GO, GO, GO!
Giving orders to herself, her Extreme Death Spirit Dress, Number 15
──COME ON, ASTAROTH, THIS ISN'T THE LIMITS OF YOUR FLAMES!
Ikari, also giving those orders to himself, those flames began to rise. At this stage, it wasn't the normal consumption of flames.
But the high-speed flames that had one singular direction, like the propeller of a jet thruster.
And this was without using
BOOOOOOM!
Sonic booms were made from their clash, and that was just once. They went again! And again! And again! And again!
In the span of a few seconds, multiple sonic booms were already made.
'Is it just me, or is Ikari-san of today stronger than yesterday?'
Empty asked herself such a question. Or was she tweaking? No. Though this was how she knew him to fight, as the first time she did see him fight, it was like this.
'Or, it could be said that Ikari-san is stronger whenever he gives it his all.'
That's it! Empty thought.
Like the battle he fought against Inui Yume, he displayed a much more overwhelming power as he was enjoying himself.
Perhaps he was repulsed by the nature of the game, which was why he never did display this power?
If that were the case then, Empty wasn't worried anymore.
"You can do it! Ikari-san!"
…
"YEAH!"
Ikari moved at a speed far surpassing even Tsuan's speed, leaving her behind, flying into the air, and making several zig-zags before coming to a stop in the sky.
Then, reaching the peak in the sky, Ikari spread out his arms, his flame sword disappearing, and with that, his reiryoku flowed out of him. The power he could draw without breaking him flowed out.
As the spirit energy flowed out of him, his reiryoku caught flames, spontaneously igniting the air, forming a circle in the sky, a mini-sun.
"Tsuan! Put all your strength into dodging this attack, otherwise you'll die!"
The sun which had been created was now absorbed by him at a faster pace than Tsaun could even deem possible.
'Danger!'
He was recreating the power to absorb heat of
From there, he descended.
[PRE-EMINENT ACCELERATION]!
NYUNNNNNN—BOOOMMMMMM!
KRrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!