When Kurogane Ouma saw Kurogane Ikki rise to his feet again, radiating even greater magical power than before, he immediately turned and left. Others did not know Ikki's current condition, but he naturally did. Everything he had worked toward all this time had been for this very goal. Yet before he could see the end of his own destiny, Ikki—the younger brother he had always looked down on—had become a Desperado first. Naturally, that irritated him immensely, to the point that he no longer cared about the outcome of the final match. Ikki's breakthrough only made Kurogane Ouma more determined to pursue his own path.
"Ah." Edelweiss sighed softly as she looked at Kurogane Ikki. Breaking through to become a Desperado was both a good thing and not a good thing for a Magic knight. Once someone became a Desperado, it meant they were no longer under destiny's protection.
"Stella, I won't lose to you." Kurogane Ikki looked at Stella as he raised Intetsu in his hand. The moment he finished speaking, Stella suddenly let out a roar. At the same time, the light and heat blooming from her body surpassed even before. Ordinary people could no longer make out Stella's figure; they could only see her silhouette enveloped in flames. Everyone's attention was drawn to her.
"That really is incredible," Saikyo Nene said in admiration. Nikyoji Kurono nodded approvingly as well. It was not only Kurogane Ikki who had broken through to become a Desperado. Stella, too, was drawing close to that threshold. Some things could not be denied. Some people could exhaust every effort and still find it difficult to become Desperados. Some would endure countless hardships before succeeding, while others could break through with ease.
Without question, Stella belonged to the last kind. She had been born