“You know each other?” Moona asked.
“We’ve met each other occasionally”, Amelia answered.
“I am Kronii Ouro, the Warden of Time. I’ll always meet with Watson whenever she’s being irresponsible with her powers”, the black-haired woman added.
She pointed her sword at Amelia.
“This time, however, is different. I’m not here to warn you about the consequences of your actions. I’m here to get the Primordial Dark.”
“And the Primordial Dark is my friend. I won’t let you have him”, Amelia said.
“Are you going to defy me again? You do know that I’m always right even back then when you ignored my warnings and caused the death of your teacher.”
“That is that and this is this. I’ll protect whatever I can protect. And I’ll fight anyone and anything if that means I can get the future I want.”
“And here I thought you learned your lesson.”
Kronii lunged and swung her sword. However, Moona got in between them and blocked her attack.
“I’m right here, you know? Don’t ignore me!” she shouted as a silver light appeared on her free hand.
Moona shot the silver light but Kronii moved out of the way. Amelia fired her gun but they were deflected by Kronii’s sword. Moona swung her sword down and clashed with Kronii’s weapons.
Kronii was too fast for someone who was doing minimal effort in her movements.
“Is she speeding herself up?” I asked.
“Good eye, Mikage. As the Warden of Time, I think it’s possible for her to do that. Her movements are too fast and yet she doesn’t look like she’s trying to make her muscles move fast”, Anya answered.
“But Moona is doing well. She is not just the chief of the Royal Peko Guards for nothing”, Yagoo added.
The two of them continued exchanging strikes and it was a stalemate. Amelia fired her gun multiple times but Kronii managed to either dodge or deflect it even if she was busy dealing with Moona’s attacks.
Amelia charged at her and tried to stab her with a dagger. However, Kronii backed away. Moona took it as a chance and fired a beam of silver light at her but Kronii easily dodged it.
“You know her, right? Is there a chance you know her weakness?” Moona asked.
“We only met a few times and this is the first time I’m fighting her. Without any clues and hints, even a great detective like me can’t deduce her weakness”, Amelia answered.
“Is that so? Then I suppose I have no other choice but to get serious.”
Moona’s purple hair began glowing a silver light. She swiftly charged forward as a silver aura surrounded her entire body. Kronii was pushed back when their swords connected.
“Lunar Blessing. Moona is serious now”, Suisei muttered.
“What’s that?” I asked.
“As the Primordial Moon, Moona is stronger in the evening while the moonlight is shining down on her. Tonight is a night with a full moon so Moona’s power is at its peak”, Yagoo answered.
Amelia tried to assist Moona by firing her gun but despite their combined efforts, Kronii was still uninjured as she dodged and deflected all of their attacks.
And then Kronii became faster. Her strikes were inhumanely quick while she was unleashing a barrage of slashes. Moona was somehow able to keep up with her but all she could do was block her attacks.
“You’re quite good to be able to keep up. But let’s see if you can handle me going faster!” Kronii shouted.
After a few seconds of her onslaught, she managed to break through Moona’s defenses. Her sword was about to stab Moona’s chest and I thought it was all over.
And in the next second, Kronii was standing a few meters away from Moona. Also, Amelia was in front of Moona and was pointing her dagger at Kronii.
“W-What just happened?” I asked.
I was sure that Kronii was about to stab Moona but for some reason, their positions changed in less than a second.
“Playing with time again, Watson? Do I have to warn you again about what happens if you keep abusing your powers as the wielder of the Primordial Time?” Kronii asked.
“Like I said, I’ll protect whatever I can protect and I’ll protect them using any means necessary”, Amelia answered.
I noticed that she was no longer holding her gun but instead, she was holding her pocket watch.
“I get it! She stopped time!” Anya exclaimed.
“Oh. So that’s why their positions changed in the next second. I thought they were too fast”, I said.
“So why won’t Amelia just stop time and finish off Kronii? She can do that, right?” Suisei asked.
“It’s probably because Kronii is a member of the Council who was specifically born to counter the Primordial Time. As the Warden of Time, she must have some authority over time too and so, Amelia’s abilities as the Primordial Time’s wielder wouldn’t have much effect”, Yagoo answered.
Amelia and Kronii were then clashing their weapons against each other in the next second. After that, they moved all over from one spot to another in the battlefield as if they were teleporting.
“You’re stopping time too much, Watson! Cut it out!” Kronii warned her.
“If this is what it takes to stop you, then I’ll do it over and over again!” Amelia shouted.
They continued popping from one place in the battlefield after another as they exchanged strikes. From what I can tell, they must be stopping time and fighting each other. That was why they looked like they were teleporting all over the battlefield.
Amelia was then kneeling on the ground with Kronii’s sword pointing against her neck.
“Even if you can stop time, you are not a warrior. You can’t hope to defeat me in a swordfight”, Kronii glared.
“You got that right. I’m more of a detective than a warrior. I never fought like this before”, Amelia panted.
Kronii was now a few meters away and Moona was standing in between the two of them.
“That’s why I’m letting Moona join the fight”, Amelia grinned.
“It feels weird to move when time is stopped but I’ll take anything to make the playing field equal”, Moona said.
“Watson. Stop it now. It’s already dangerous whenever you move while time is stopped. If you’re going to make that girl an exception, you’ll be facing dire consequences as punishment for ignoring the natural order”, Kronii warned her.
“I’ll take any punishment as long as I can protect my friend. I’m NEVER letting anyone die on me ever again”, Amelia got up.
“Even if your actions will lead to future tragedies that will affect many people?”
“Then I’ll just figure a way to turn the situation around when those tragedies occur.”
In the next second, Moona and Kronii were clashing swords and they moved around the battlefield while time stopped.
Moona and Amelia had the situation under control… I think. That’s why I looked at the other screens to see what was happening.
Haato was still beating up one soldier after another while Shion was healing her. However, Mumei was still far away and was relaxing on her throne while eating berries.
Calliope and Kiara were dodging the lightning and wind while trying to get close to Fauna. On the other hand, Fauna was keeping the distance by summoning plants to get in her opponents’ ways.
Gura and Lamy were charging towards Sana who was now gigantic in size. Whenever Lamy would try to freeze Sana, the ice would be repelled by an invisible force.
Ina was firing Rapid Bombardments while Baelz was manipulating reality. Their surroundings were completely distorted which gave me a headache just by looking at it.
“I’m glad our plan worked”, Yagoo said.
“Yeah. All five of the Council were baited out. Let’s just hope they can defeat one of them and run as backup for the rest”, Suisei muttered.
Anya paled when she heard that.
“Wait… You’re saying you think that you baited all of the Council?” she asked.
“Why, yes. Ina’nis said that there were only five members so I split the team into five groups”, Yagoo answered.
I then remembered the Primordial Dark’s warning and that person still didn’t appear.
“You’re wrong! There’s one more person! And they’re the most dangerous!” Anya said.
And then something descended from the sky and landed in front of us. Upon further inspection, it was a person.
That person had long white hair and a triangle-shaped object was floating above her head. Her outfit was completely white and her emotionless eyes were unnerving.
“I found you, Primordial Dark”, she said.
Anya transformed into her sword form and I grabbed her. I could feel the Primordial Dark inside me getting agitated as I prepared for battle.
Omegaɑ has arrived.
###
A/N: We’re almost done with this final arc of Volume 4! After I finish this arc, I’m gonna take a two-week break because college is starting once again. Until then, please enjoy.
