The Necrosword spun half a turn in her hand, blade forward, hilt back.
Her body lowered slightly, her weight shifted forward, the fingertips of her left hand lightly touching the ground while the sword in her right hand pointed diagonally at Knull's throat.
Her stance was like that of a cheetah preparing to pounce—graceful, lethal, every inch of muscle coiled with power.
Knull raised his dark red sword as well, its tip aimed at Lazuli Eve's heart.
His body lowered slightly too, his weight forward, his left hand open as dark red energy swirled in his palm.
His stance was nearly identical to Lazuli Eve's. He was imitating her, studying her, trying to find an opening.
They moved at the same time.
They did not turn into light, teleport, or move at high speed.
This was real, pure physical movement.
Their footsteps left black and dark red trails in the void, like two dancers gliding across ice—graceful and deadly.
The first strike: Lazuli Eve's sword tip thrust toward Knull's right eye.
Knull tilted his head aside, and the tip swept past his eye, less than a millimeter away.
He felt that black light scrape across the surface of his eyeball like a red-hot blade. It was not pain, but searing heat.
The second strike: Knull's dark red sword swept toward Lazuli Eve's neck.
Lazuli Eve threw her head back, and the blade skimmed above her chin, severing several strands of black hair.
The strands drifted through Chaos Space, turning into specks of black light before vanishing.
The third strike: Lazuli Eve's sword swept upward from below, targeting Knull's abdomen.
Knull blocked it with his dark red sword, and the two swords collided again.
This time, there was no energy sphere or shockwave—only the crisp metallic ring of blade against blade,