Only Belief

Sakura glanced at the pocket watch hanging from her chest. The hour hand pointed to five. The second hand ticked softly—a sound most people couldn't hear, but as a Fusion Warrior, Sakura could.

The massive traffic jam crawled forward like an elderly person leaning on a cane, wheels rumbling on the black asphalt. It was obvious they were fleeing, and as for their destination, the coordinating liaison had only said one thing: "Run as far as you can."

They had been baking under the scorching sun for hours, the convoy still inching along the outskirts of the city. The greedy, cowardly rich and high-ranking officials had long since boarded private jets, disappearing into underground villas in unknown locations.

Sakura tightened her grip on her katana. Even if it wasn't her turn to face a Law-Ruler, she still had to deal with the wandering Honkai Beasts. She stood in the center of the convoy, able to cover both ends if anything happened. It also served to calm the populace, most of whom viewed Fusion Warriors as potential Law-Rulers.

A commotion seemed to be brewing at the front of the convoy. Everyone was running backward in a panic. From the expressions on most faces, they didn't know why; they were just blindly following the crowd.

"What's wrong? What happened?" Sakura stopped someone who was fleeing. He trembled, raised his hand, and pointed towards the front of the convoy.

"Law-Ruler! It's a Law-Ruler!" he blurted out madly before running off.

"How can this be..." Sakura's expression grew solemn. She immediately drew Cold Prison Ice Sky from its sheath and ran towards the front of the convoy.

A small golden halo and meaningless golden runes circled her body. A gentle breeze ruffled her short silver-white hair. Her soft, long white dress reached her knees. The Law-Ruler moved with mechanical steps, her transparent crystal boots leaving mercury-like ripples in the air.

"Hello, do you know where your leader is?" The content of her question held no malice, yet her tone was empty and mechanical, like a true robot. In the eyes of this lifeless machine, the vibrant world held no color or ripple.

She could instantly kill everyone in this massive convoy. Her seemingly insurmountable abilities could end everyone here immediately, but that would be inefficient.

The portly official trembled, his mind racing to find a way to survive. He wiped the cold sweat from his face. "She... she's in the back. I'll help you find her right away!"

"Okay, thank you..."

The portly official wore a fake, fawning smile, nodding frantically like a pecking chick.

"Y-yes! I'll be right back!" The portly official ran off like the wind, his speed seemingly impossible for a man weighing over two hundred pounds.

"Damn it! I should have left with the mayor instead of foolishly seeking credit!"

"Miss Sakura, save me, Miss Sakura, please don't run away..." the portly official muttered inwardly, his selfish thoughts praying for noble actions. Some people willingly transform into beasts, protecting humanity amidst a pack of enemies, hoping that kindness and humanity can survive in a dark universe. But when they turn around, they find that their compatriots, whom they desperately protected, have become something worse than beasts, merely clinging to life.

Cold Prison Ice Sky gleamed with a chilling light. The orange sunset stretched Sakura's shadow into a long, slender shape. Her feet landed on the roofs of one car after another, leaving behind beautiful ice flowers. Her light and agile form leaped between military and civilian vehicles, her sakura-colored hair dancing in the wind.

She wished she could be faster, to buy these people more time to evacuate.

"Lady Sakura! Lady Sakura!"

Sakura leaped rapidly over the traffic, leaving dents from her powerful jumps on the roofs between cars. The portly official's sharp eyes caught sight of her, and he quickly called out to her with all his might.

Sakura noticed the person waving his hands but didn't stop. Instead, she continued to leap forward. Though selfish, the portly official wasn't stupid; he knew why Sakura was ignoring him. A foolish person couldn't be a corrupt official, only a foolish one. Those who were foolish and greedy wouldn't die by the hands of good people; they would die by their own actions.

So he shouted to Sakura, "The Law-Ruler is up ahead! She said if she doesn't see you, we will all die!"

Sakura nodded, signaling she understood. The portly official ran off without looking back. Along the way, he knocked over a child and a mother trying to help the child up, all while cursing his superiors who had fled by plane overnight.

"Faster, faster, faster..." Sakura didn't even notice she was muttering her thoughts aloud.

She had arrived! She stopped and looked up at the Law-Ruler in the sky. The Law-Ruler's figure obscured the setting sun.

"Hello, do you know where Dr. Mei is?"

"..." Sakura silently watched the Law-Ruler of Restraint, her gaze seemingly as sharp as the cold, gleaming blade in her hand.

"Hello, do you know where Dr. Mei is?" she formed a sentence with empty words.

She closed her eyes, slowly raised the sword in her hand, and assumed a starting stance, taking a deep breath.

"Why won't you tell me..."

"You can find her yourself." Sakura kept her eyes closed, using her senses to perceive all information from the surrounding air.

Sakura's body tilted slightly.

A dazzling cold light flashed.

Sakura instantly appeared directly behind the Law-Ruler!

Raising her blade, she slashed!

The Law-Ruler of Restraint dodged to the side, but it was too late. The tip of the blade drew a long arc across her back, and golden blood gushed out.

"Answers are always so difficult..." the Law-Ruler of Restraint sighed.

"Be angry, the angrier the better," Sakura thought silently. "That way, your attention will be on me."

"Everything you do will ultimately be in vain. I will find Dr. Mei, and your death will be meaningless," she said to Sakura with sorrow and pity. Wings of light carved with golden cross patterns appeared behind her. The Law-Ruler of Restraint did not deploy her barrier. While her abilities were deadly, the consumption of Honkai energy was also immense. Dealing with just one Fusion Warrior did not require a barrier.

Sakura pressed her advantage, thrusting Cold Prison Ice Sky towards the Law-Ruler's chest. The Law-Ruler subtly shifted, dodging the thrust. Unexpectedly, she grabbed the blade of Cold Prison Ice Sky and then delivered a powerful horizontal kick towards Sakura's waist. Seeing this, Sakura quickly brought her arm up to block her waist, the immense force sending a stinging pain through her hand.

Sakura twisted the blade with force, pulling it free from the Law-Ruler's grasp. She kicked the Law-Ruler hard in the abdomen, quickly creating distance between them. At this range, Sakura could easily leverage the length advantage of her katana.

"Good opportunity!"

Sakura spun around and swung, Cold Prison Ice Sky aiming for the Law-Ruler's neck. The Law-Ruler ducked to evade, and broken white hair fluttered down.

"You fell for it," Sakura's voice echoed in her ear. She used the moment the Law-Ruler was dodging and lost visual tracking to close the distance.

The Law-Ruler of Restraint was, after all, just an ordinary human transformed into a Law-Ruler. In terms of combat experience, she probably couldn't even compare to a regular soldier, let alone a battle-hardened Fusion Warrior like Sakura.

Sakura forcefully drove her knee into the Law-Ruler's chest. Intense pain spread from her chest, and the powerful force sent her flying several meters into the air. The Law-Ruler barely managed to stabilize herself, a trickle of golden blood uncontrollably flowing from the corner of her mouth.

"Sigh..." The Law-Ruler sighed again, wiping her face with her blood-stained hand. Blood seeped from her palm, flowing down her arm to gather at her elbow joint like a thin golden river.

The Law-Ruler's attacks became even more ferocious, with no defense, only relentless offense. The length advantage of the katana was completely negated by these desperate, beast-like attacks. However, the Law-Ruler, lacking combat experience, was still on the defensive even in this state. The Law-Ruler of Restraint was merely relying on the brute force and strong physique granted by her status as a Law-Ruler to fight head-on.

"Her attacks are getting more intense. I hope that group can evacuate quickly before it gets dark." Sakura never expected to defeat a Law-Ruler alone. She was well aware of her own strength; even if she could suppress this young girl who had just become a Law-Ruler with her fists and the hilt of her sword.

Sakura's combat experience allowed her to easily maximize the length advantage of her katana. It was inevitable that this Law-Ruler, without using her abilities, would fall to Sakura. But she didn't do that. She abandoned her weapon advantage and experience, pretending the exchange with the Law-Ruler was evenly matched.

Sakura was stalling, and she was gambling. Stalling long enough for the evacuation, and gambling that Dr. Mei had prepared a solution.