The Battle Between Me and Myself, Part Seven

Beast Armed - Kangaroo Unity Shooting Backpack!

The Gao Kangaroo Mother and Child flew through the wormhole and combined to transform into a trident-shaped shooting backpack, which was mounted in the middle of Icarus's wings. Two long cannons were placed on its shoulders, and the longest and thickest cannon in the middle was temporarily folded down to be stored as a propulsion unit. After thinking for a moment, the GaoRed Lion simply folded down the other two cannons as well to increase its own power, since it did not need to shoot for the time being.

Beast 32 Super Combination - Complete!

PS: Adding a penguin and kangaroo mother and child to the 29-combination makes it 32! Oh, right, the penguin is equipped with a fist-gun-like weapon that can extend into an ice sword on its right hand, gripping the built-in handle.

A bright light shone from the hole in Benares's neck, and countless thick beams of light refracted out from it, converging into a single point and shooting straight at Ultimate Beast GaoKing. The opponent remained calm and composed, raising his arms together in front of his chest, gathering energy on the shark-like blades on both sides of his arms. After completing a simple starting stance, he quickly separated his arms and then positioned them in a cross shape, unleashing rays containing terrifying heat from his arms.

Cross Storm!

Note: In essence, it is still the transfer and use of energy, but this move was taught to the Power Beast when I had nothing else to do, but none of the machines could use it before.

Two terrifying rays collided in mid-air, triggering a massive shockwave that caused the dark barrier to tremble, affecting everyone fighting below to varying degrees.

"Roar!"

"Roar!"

Neither beast would yield, and they both increased their output. The powerful force even tore through space. Seeing this, the IF Bug temporarily stopped its pursuit of Kiana, gritted its teeth and activated its power, and a huge portal appeared between the two beasts.

"Benares!"

With a long roar, the Bone Dragon flapped its wings and soared upwards, maintaining its wave-push state. It knocked away the Ultimate Beast GaoKing, who had just received the battlefield transfer order from Sachi, and both disappeared into the dark portal.

Beast Armed - Groundhog Drill!

Gao Marmot arrived as ordered, and with its transforming weapon on the left hand of Ultimate Beast GaoKing, a gigantic drill emerged under the boost of enormous energy.

Beasts 33 Super Combination - Complete!

"Roar! (Drills are the romance of the Power Beast!)"

With all three wings exerting force simultaneously, and sparks shooting from the three cannons propelling it into the sky, the GaoFox also transformed into a giant Nine-Tails fire dance to assist it. Ultimate Beast GaoKing raised its drill high and charged towards Benares with full power.

Benares opened its massive maw, rapidly gathering its powerful dragon breath before unleashing it upon the Ultimate Beast GaoKing.

The floating island next to the Schicksal Headquarters:...

How did I get teleported here?!

Ahem, the two are evenly matched, this battle won't end so easily. Let's turn our attention back to the Fire-Chasing Squad, who are currently fighting their own battles.

Bang! Crack! Boom!

Kiana became extremely focused, relentlessly swinging the fire sword in her hand. Even though her hands were numb from the force of the impact, she dared not let her guard down.

"(There's nothing I can do. According to my brat, this is an opponent I need to upgrade to defeat, and I'm still in my initial form.)" Kiana looked at the three small books she was using, then at the large book, Jaou Dragon, stuck in IF Bug waistband, and felt like crying.

Since her benevolent thoughts from her alternate dimension can become a cheat code, the Sword of Light 1, why not just give her a book as well?!

Hey, speaking of the Light Sword...

Kiana suddenly understood, pressing her sword against the Sword of Darkness, creating a brief stalemate with the IF Bug. Taking the opportunity, she shouted to the other side, "Shin! Quickly transform into the Light-Hard Sword Most Light! I need its power!"

Since it is a weapon created to suppress malice, it will definitely hit the vital point when used to deal with this guy. Even if the difference in form and stats is too great, it can win!

Kiana thought so, but for some reason, she never answered her.

The Gemini Kitsune, with its strong mechanical style, was locked in fierce combat with the IF Goose. Every movement of her joints produced a distinct mechanical sound, while her own voice seemed to have fallen silent, disappearing after the battle began.

"Xing! Xing! What are you spacing out for?!" Kiana, anxiously dodging an attack from IF Bug, shouted at her, but her bratty little brother, who gave her a sense of security, did not respond.

"Could it be..."

Inside the cold armor, the light from the built-in projection screen shone on the girl's delicate face. Her half-closed heterochromatic eyes were devoid of any luster, making her look like a speechless doll.

On the mask's interface, the bright red "Automatic combat" stands out starkly.

(Note: Auto-battle)

"Damn it!" Kiana guessed that Sachi had probably fallen into a deep sleep due to the exhaustion of the battle, so she abandoned her idea of taking a shortcut. But at that moment, an ominous black mist emerged from the IF Goose's armor. Losing patience, she finally used this power. The knight armor shattered, and a set of pitch-black evil armor appeared on her body, reminding Kiana of the Golden Holy Fighting Goose she had seen.

Wait a minute, could it be that...?!

"Disappear!" IF Goose uttered these words coldly, then distanced itself, raised its leg to kick the gun, and prepared to unleash a terrifyingly powerful attack.

"Watch out!" Kiana, in a panic, unleashed unprecedented power, using the tip of her sword to deflect the IF Bug's weapon and rush past her towards Sachi. The IF Bug watched as Kiana, with her back to her, placed the hilt of her sword on the drive button on her belt, but for some reason did not press it.

"Rekka Draw Sword!"

The flaming sword, burning with flames, was swung by its wielder at the spear forged from the malice of the world. The immense pressure made her heart sink, and after a brief stalemate, she was unsurprisingly pushed backward by the impact.

The black flames spread along the weapon to her body, and a surge of air swept past her ears. A crack appeared on the side of her helmet, revealing a blue eye.

Command Twin Victory!

As Kiana arrived to attack, the AI-controlled Extreme Fox flew upwards, its two cannons, which served as propulsion systems, spewing blue flames as it lunged at the IF Goose in mid-air, assuming a flying kick stance.

Boom!!!

After a brief pause, the power of the lance surpassed that of the knight's kick. The Gemini Kitsune were swept away by the lance, their armor crackling with electricity. They deactivated their transformation in mid-air and, under the force of the impact, flew off the platform, plummeting to the ground like puppets with broken strings.

If Sachi herself had been in charge of the battle, she should have been able to avoid that attack. It's a pity, though; the AI combat system of Desire Driver still needs continuous improvement.

But the focus now should be on Kiana, who took the hit head-on from IF Goose. No matter what, this was an attack comparable to the Immortal Anchor. As expected, she was pushed off the rooftop. Her armor absorbed most of the damage, turning into red particles of light and collapsing. She also lost consciousness and fell downwards.

The energy for the second transformation has been exhausted.

Hmm, according to the usual anime and novel tropes, the protagonist should have a flashback at this point, then awaken new powers and take down the BOSS in one fell swoop?

Let's do this clichéd plot again...

——Qi Men——

Bang! Bang! Bang!

A series of bullets hit the target, seemingly a random burst of fire, but upon closer inspection, the bullet holes were found to be arranged in a precise circle.

"Hmph, it's your turn, Bronya. Don't say I'm bullying you." Kiana smugly blew on the hot muzzle of the gun and handed the shooting training gun to Bronya was still playing Yugi.

The duck impatiently handed the Yugi to his wife—no, still his husband—and then, without even glancing at the gun Kiana gave him, summoned the Heavy-Duty Rabbit 19C and raised its dark cannon muzzle.

Fire!

Boom!!!

After a loud bang, Kiana stared at the large, smoking crater in front of her and fell into deep thought.

"You cheated! We agreed to a shooting contest, how can you play like this?!" The Kiana, realizing what had happened, lunged at Bronya, baring its Ya Ya, trying to beat her up. Duck sneered and pulled the boy next to it to stand between himself and Kiana.

Xing silently raised her head, her red pupils faintly tinged with blue, and the Stigmata on her right hand became even more vibrant.

The two little ones stared expressionlessly at Kiana, whose face was flushed red. Finally, Kiana abandoned her gun and left angrily. Sachi, who witnessed all this, glanced back at Bronya, thought for a moment, and then chased after Kiana in the direction she had left.

Seeing this, Ya Ya didn't say much, but simply called the two Seele and urged them to log on and play with him.

The boy was on his way...

The white fluffy ball of fur turned her grief and anger into appetite, wolfing down a large plate of food in front of her. Looking at her bitter and resentful expression, someone who didn't know better would probably think she had a grudge against this pile of food.

"Heh, seeing that you're still as carefree as ever, I'm relieved."

A familiar voice rang in her ears. Kiana didn't even look up, but silently moved to the side. The two siblings sat together as if by telepathy and began to eat and chat happily.

"(Waaaaah) If you hadn't protected that little dwarf, I would have given her a good beating!"

"(Awoo awoo) To be honest, Bronya's marksmanship is no worse than yours. She's a legend in the assassin world. How about we have a long-range precision sniping contest?"

"(Awoo awoo) Get away, I can't hit you if you're too far away. I play a melee marksman, why bother with long-range sniping?"

"(Aww) That makes sense. Why would someone be stupid enough to compare their strengths with yours? Don't people usually use their strengths to attack their weaknesses?"

"(Aww aww) You've become so pedantic since you came back from Shenzhou... Speaking of strengths, my Kaslana bloodline is clearly purer, so why were you able to awaken the Stigmata while I couldn't?"

"(cough cough) (gulp gulp) Sister, do you think it's possible that although I'm mixed-race, my bloodline is actually much purer than yours?"

(Here, he was caught off guard by Kiana's sudden question, and the kind-hearted Kiana handed him a glass of water.)

"?"

"It's nothing. By the way, actually, the Stigmata isn't that important. You can be born with it or awaken it later. When you reach that level, you'll naturally have it too."

"Don't talk about Stigmata like cabbages at the market!"

"Are Stigmata so rare? Believe me, in a few years Herrscher Core will be as common as wholesale."

"You're kidding me!"

A year or two later—

Kiana looked at the N Herrscher in the team, including herself, and began to doubt her own outlook on life and the world.

After eating and drinking her fill, Kiana looked at the bright Kaslana Stigmata on the back of his hand and couldn't help but feel envious again.

"Don't worry about the Stigmata so much. It's just a tattoo." Sachi raised her head seriously, took Kiana's hand and placed it on her chest. "It's just a feature. What's important is yourself."

"I know that what you care about is not the benefits that the Stigmata can bring, but the event of having the Stigmata itself. You consider yourself a genius, but you haven't awakened the Kaslana Stigmata. Even if you don't say it usually, you must be feeling very bad inside, right?"

"Don't rush. When the day comes that you truly awaken, this power of your bloodline will eventually become one of your indispensable strengths."

"But the premise is that you need to have the courage to face yourself; otherwise, you will be stuck in the past."

At that time, Kiana was unaware of the profound meaning behind the boy's words. When that day finally came, the despair of reality ultimately overwhelmed the pillar of her heart.

——Qi Men——

Kiana struggled to open her eyes, every inch of her skin burning as if it were being scalded, most noticeably on the back of her right hand, as if someone had placed a red-hot iron on it.

"Here it is..."

Everywhere she looked was blood red. Kiana stood up from the blood-red sand and scanned her surroundings. Broken building fragments were scattered on the ground, and the boundless blood-red sand brought a sense of inexplicable fear.

Fragments of memory rushed into her mind, and she recalled the battles she had fought before.

"Wasn't I fighting with that other version of myself? Where am I? Could it be her doing again?"

Kiana felt as if she were carrying a thousand pounds of weight, and every step she took required all her strength. She gritted her teeth and struggled forward in this wasteland. She looked down at the back of her right hand, which was otherwise unremarkable except for a few more wounds. Her holy sword was gone, and she had lost contact with her companions. The situation couldn't be worse, but the most important thing now was to figure out her current predicament.

I don't know how Xing is doing. In the last second before she lost consciousness, it seems like my little brother was knocked away...

It's really tough on him. He's so weak, yet he still dragged his body, which could fall into a deep sleep at any moment, onto the battlefield. I, who call myself his older sister every day, am really ridiculous.

Wait a minute, what's that?!

An unseen bloodline connection led her to the boy's side. He, small in stature, lay there in the blood-red sand, his eyes closed, without a sound, looking as if he were dead.

"That was how Sachi was originally... Sachi!"

Kiana exclaimed in surprise, her concern turning into strength, prompting her to lunge forward, only to be blasted away by an invisible barrier, carving a long trench in the sand.

"Damn it, what's going on?!" Kiana struggled to her feet again and looked up to see dark red liquid gushing out from under the blood sand, gradually covering her body and pulling her into the blood sand.

"Stop it!"

Kiana rushed forward in a panic, only to be easily slapped away by tentacles formed from the dark red liquid. The distinct pain in her body seemed to remind her that without the help of those external forces, she was just an ordinary girl who couldn't do anything.

"Leave your brat here!"

She didn't give up, but pounced again. This time, she seized the opportunity when the tentacles attacked, barely dodged, and rushed in front of Xing despite the immense repulsive force. The huge pressure caused her to fall backward to the ground, but her outstretched hand tightly grabbed the boy's arm.

The dark red liquid transformed into several long whips, lashing her body mercilessly. The pain, almost penetrating to the bone, caused her to howl incessantly. But even so, she did not let go, clinging tightly to her bratty younger brother who, after a fight with her, would come to her the next day with a cake to make up.

Her clothes were immediately torn to shreds on her back, arms, and thighs, leaving her with raw, ripped skin. The once youthful and lovely girl was reduced to this miserable state in an instant.

Even so, she did not loosen her grip on his hand.

Kiana had a premonition that if she let go here and allowed herself to be swallowed by those dark red, unidentified liquids, she might never see her little brother again.

Warm blood splattered and disappeared into the dark red liquid, immediately emitting a hissing steam, as if the girl's blood had a restraining effect on these unknown substances.

However, outnumbered by the enemy, even if Kiana were drained of her strength, she wouldn't be able to force them to retreat.

Kiana's blue pupils gradually lost their luster, her stiff fingers gradually lost their strength, and as she sensed the life force draining from her body, Kiana stared intently at him as he was slowly pulled into the bloody sand, and gave a self-deprecating smile.

In the end, I still can't help you?

I've been protected by you the whole time, it's so unfair! Can't you just let me save you for a while too?

Please, whoever it is, give me strength, give me strength!

Without power, without power...

My beloved little brother is about to leave my side!

When the protagonist in a comic book is in dire straits, there is usually a trigger that guides her to awaken a new power, or a teammate is sacrificed to awaken the protagonist.

However, I'm sorry, this is reality, and there are no such melodramatic plots here.

But... this is a novel, a story, isn't it?

Regardless of the true account, at least the person telling this story held unrealistic blessings for the characters in it.

——Qi Men——

The seemingly scattered bloodstains unintentionally formed a complex pattern.

A fiery red light emanated from the back of the girl's right hand, like a slowly rising sun, melting the dark red liquid around them.

Kiana, still unaware of what was happening, felt the resistance lessen and struggled to pull him towards her.

By squeezing every cell in his body of energy, he was finally able to bring the most familiar person back to his side.

Exhausted, Kiana disregarded her joy at having the boy back and held him tightly in her arms, refusing to let go no matter what.

But reality is always cruel. A huge, dark red beast burst out of the blood sand, its massive claws slamming down and separating the two once more. The tiny boy was thrown into its mouth with a "gulp," and then there was no more movement.

It smacked its lips contentedly a few times, and just as it was about to dive back into the blood sand, it sensed a faint movement.

A tiny flame rose from the endless blood-red sand. It was so small that it was almost imperceptible, and one could only worry that a gust of wind would extinguish it.

But no matter how small the flame, it will eventually become the fuel that burns the sky.

"My body pillow, my teammates, my ace, my friends, my family—"

Covered in blood, Kiana staggered to her feet from the deep crater created by the giant beast. A faint red light flickered on the back of her right hand, like a timer for life; its extinguishing would mean Kiana's death.

But the girl named Kiana Kaslana will not back down. Even if it means burning herself out, she will illuminate this sky, just to protect...

"Give me back the person I love!!!"

(Please listen to "Any Other Way" at this time; they go surprisingly well together.)

A faint red dot lit up on the giant beast's belly, seemingly resonating with the Stigmata on Kiana's hand, flashing in the same rhythm.

A torrent of flames erupted from the blood-red sand, transforming into the weapon in the girl's hand, much like the emotions long hidden in her heart.

The flames formed the shape of a sword. Kiana didn't care about anything else and reached out to pull the greatsword out of the blood sand. In that instant, a warm current flowed through her body along the weapon.

Every scene of her time with Mei and the others flashed through her mind, and finally, the image settled on a white fluffy ball, one big and one small, holding hands and skipping school.

"This is the Knight's Judgment... I see, so that's how it is."

She mimicked Xing's actions, drawing her sword and charging towards the roaring giant that swung its claws at her, while softly chanting:

"O newborn, nameless flame, now forged into a blade of courage, paving the way for me..."

Azure flames spread across her body, forming a white knight's light armor. Kiana raised her sword and pointed it at the giant monster, her blue eyes filled with determination, and a hint of red even emanated from one of her blue eyes.

"Fusion Summon! Appear, Level 8, Judgment Knight!"

Bonds—Armed!!!

The warrior, who originally required two people to appear, is now transformed by Kiana alone. However, unlike the original, the Judgment Knight is now based on Kiana.

With patterns shimmering on the backs of her hands, Kiana dodged the giant beast's claws with a dive, and as she fell, she raised Knight's Judgment. The sword suddenly lengthened, and the blue energy blade cleaved the giant beast's claws in two.

A roar of pain rang out, making eardrums ache, but Kiana paid no attention. Golden chains and surging flames emerged from the Stigmata on her left hand, coalescing into the shape of a sword.

"Please allow me to borrow your power!"

Heavenly Fire Judgment - Oath of Protection: At this moment, please become the protective blade that I use to protect my loved ones!

Kiana raised two greatswords that were almost identical except for their color, and red and blue flames shot into the sky before slashing heavily at the giant beast, leaving a huge red and blue intertwined "X"-shaped wound on its body.

In the center of the wound, Kiana 1 vaguely saw the person she cared about most being swallowed by countless dark red tentacles and sinking into the abyss.

"Heavenly Fire—"

The Knight's Judgment disintegrated into twin pistols, which were inserted into her back and exploded into wings of light. Kiana gripped the hilt of the Heavenly Fire Judgment: Oath of Protection with both hands and charged towards the giant beast like a shooting star.

The monstrous alien beast opened its gaping maw, and countless dark red tentacles emerged from its back, rapidly attacking Kiana who was rushing towards it. Dark breath spewed from its maw, intending to destroy her completely.

"Draw it!!!"

A tiny flame struggled to traverse the pitch-black breath, the immense resistance forcing it to retreat. The flame burning on the sword also weakened for a moment, but...

"Never—give up!!!"

With her wings of light expanding, Kiana roared and swung her sword down again. The red meteor with its blue tail flames pierced through the alien behemoth's attack, tearing a large hole in its body. The boy who had been swallowed by it was naturally rescued by the girl.

Kiana glanced tenderly at the sleeping boy in her arms, then, holding him in one arm, she raised the Guardian Blade once more and swung it down at the dark sky.

In the distance, the white-haired man silently witnessed the entire battle. After a long silence, he turned to the white-haired woman beside him, who was holding fries and a hamburger, and asked, "Activating her latent Stigmata... what exactly are you trying to do?"

"Oh dear, why am I always being misunderstood?" Yu Tu, who had originally wanted to share the snacks with her colleague—no, at this point she should be called Mystelyn —retracted her hand with a bright smile. "Even without me, she should have awakened under this kind of stimulation. I just helped her awaken the other one as well."

"But... why is it so difficult for all the Saniat powers to awaken? That child named Sachi is the same, but this little girl's situation is much better than his."

"Our duty is simply to give them trials; don't do anything unnecessary." The man's cold words were devoid of any emotion, much like the original owner of the personality fragment it was currently inhabiting.

"Oh?" Mystelyn narrowed her eyes. "Although I consider us colleagues, it seems that our ideas differ."

The man nodded noncommittally. Seeing this, she could only shake her head helplessly, turn around and leave, muttering to herself before she went, "Why do all the girls around that little guy seem to have some kind of ambiguous feeling towards him? Bronya, you'd better step up your game. With your figure and looks, I'm worried about your future status after marriage..."

——Qi Men——

Kiana slowly opened her eyes and realized that she was falling. The battle that had just happened felt like a Fleeting Life. She thought it was a long journey, but reality was just a fleeting moment.

Only...

Holy wings of light unfurled behind her. Kiana steadied herself and flew to catch Luming, who was also falling. She frowned slightly, then carefully sensed her surroundings before her brow relaxed.

It was at this moment that she noticed the changes in herself.

A vibrant Stigmata shone on the back of her right hand, unlike Xing's or anyone else's; it was Stigmata unique to her.

Kiana finally obtained the Stigmata she had longed for, but she felt no joy whatsoever, finding her heart utterly indifferent.

She looked at her left hand; the bright red pattern vanished in an instant.

Kiana!

Mei's exclamation came from beside her ear. She turned her head and saw her lover's surprised face in the distance.

Her long, white hair, as white as snow, cascaded down to her waist. She wore a skirt armor that blended knightly and Nun styles, and her strong, long legs were hidden in black and white over-the-knee stockings and a pair of metal combat boots of different lengths.

(Ahem, the rest is up to your imagination; the author will stop here.)

Two holy wings of light unfurled behind her, and Kiana raised the Guardian Blade borrowed from a lucky person, challenging her counterpart high in the sky.

Kiana Kaslana, Kaslana Stigmata Awakening Form, reporting for duty!

(Looking for a suitable name for the armored vehicle online~)

Author's Note—

Alas, my life has been full of hardships and twists and turns, and I've finally come this far.

Ahem, how was your impression of this chapter? Was it exciting or not?

I wonder what score you would give it out of 1 to 10?