(Heartfelt thanks to 'As I Think, As I Wish,' 'Vegetable Radish,' 'Invincible Origin,' 'Yakumo Maki,' 'You Bi Ji Yue,' 'Wufeng Haotian,' 'World's End Ballad,' and 'Chenfeng☆' for their rewards!)
In a corner of the Elf Forest engulfed by a blazing sea of fire, waves of flame rolled and the scorching firelight shook violently, causing tree after tree to gradually collapse in the flames and turn to charcoal.
"Uwoooooo—!"
A gigantic black giant, over ten, perhaps twenty meters tall, stood in the center of the inferno.
Velsaria's mindless roar echoed from within, driving the black giant into a frenzy as ominous black mist surged continuously from its body and spread in every direction.
"Ren... Ashbell..."
Faintly, Velsaria's voice could still be heard from within the black giant. Beneath her mindless roars was a call filled with an obsession even deeper than madness.
Hearing that voice clearly, Ren gripped her black Spirit Armament tightly and faced the giant that seemed to blot out the sky. The dense divine power around her surged wildly into the Knight Sword in her hand, making it bloom with a dazzling black radiance.
"Boom—!"
At the same time, the ominous black mist swelling endlessly from the black armored giant's body instantly transformed into whip-like shadows, slicing through space as they swept toward Ren.
Yet at that very moment, Ren abruptly swung her Spirit Armament, meeting the frenzied whips head-on.
"Clang—!"
The insubstantial black mist collided with Ren's Spirit Armament, somehow producing the sound of clashing metal and scattering sparks.
A rather strange force shook through it, knocking the whip shadows formed from black mist aside. They grazed Ren's body and lashed toward the side.
"Bang—!"
The mist whip, still carrying its momentum, struck a nearby tree and violently blasted apart the burning trunk, reducing it to a