"I won't let you interfere with Leon!" Naya spread her arms wide, blocking her path.

"Just a mere Priestess..." The golden-haired girl braced herself against the wall—lightning crackled from her touch the instant she made contact!? In the blink of an eye, a huge chunk of the wall vanished! Before her, twenty-eight stone arrows materialized mid-air, hovering ominously.

"What is that?" Ruri gasped, utterly stunned alongside Naya.

"Alchemy granted by the Feathered Serpent!" The golden-haired girl smirked triumphantly. Victory was already hers in an instant—"You think you can stop me? Don't be absurd! With Lusia behind me, I have nothing to fear! Once I deal with you two, I'll clean up the palace ruins the dragon left behind. Your companion was truly unlucky to cross paths with Lusia."

"I believe in Leon," Naya declared, her eyes burning with resolve.

"Heh, I believe in Lusia too!" The golden-haired girl snapped her fingers. All twenty-eight arrows shot straight at Naya!

"Naya, why aren't you dodging?!" Ruri tugged urgently at her sleeve.

"I—" Dodge? With Naya's reflexes, the only thing she could manage was to shut (close) her eyes tight??

Miraculously, the moment the arrows struck Naya, they transformed into twenty-eight silvery-white Vector Arrows, twisting mid-air to reverse course—"What the?!" The golden-haired girl barely managed to leap aside. Had she been a second slower, she'd have been pierced through.

Naya exhaled shakily. That had been terrifying!

"I am the Hero's shield!" Naya kept her arms outstretched, voice unwavering. "You can't hurt me!"

Countless heroines had met tragic ends shielding their heroes at crucial moments. Thankfully, such a fate would never befall Naya.

"A mere Priestess wielding such power? Now I finally understand why His Majesty takes the Aeon Sect so seriously." The golden-haired girl chuckled. "Fine. Even if you can deflect my endless arrows, so what? As long as I don't move, you can't touch me. Why don't we sit and chat? Soon enough, you'll be collecting your companion's corpse!"

"..." Naya's face tightened with worry for Leon. Her silence spoke volumes.

A victorious smile spread across the golden-haired girl's lips.

"Naya, I have a plan," Ruri whispered.

"What? Do you have some magic to use, Ruri?"

"Let's talk then! Since Leon isn't here!" Ruri suddenly raised her voice, startling even Naya. "Have you kissed Leon yet?" she blurted out, fixing Naya with a wounded look. "I haven't even held his hand. You're always one step ahead of me."

Though Ruri fought to control her trembling voice, the pain she'd buried for so long was unmistakable.

"W-What...?" Naya froze completely. Denying it now would be utterly weak.

"With what right did you hold Leon's hand?"

"...For a few seconds, Ruri was utterly speechless.

"I—I! Leon promised to take care of me!"

"I'm Leon's true lover...! Don't you dare hold his hand behind my back!!" Naya's voice rose sharply—! Light erupted around her! In an instant, she shifted back into her Form of Light. Her slightly longer hair rippled like silvery auroras.

Was she... flaring up??

Even the flames near her back transformed into silvery Vector Arrows, clustering like thorny vines.

Aio stared, utterly bewildered. "What's this? Are you two fighting each other now?"

"You really scare me." Ruri backed away until she hit the wall—"You can handle her alone in this state, right? Fine, fine! I'm backing out. I'm leaving, okay?"

She raised her hands in surrender, inching cautiously toward the door—

Just meters from the golden-haired girl, Aio barked a command—"You! Stand still!" She pointed a wary finger. "Did you think I wouldn't see through your trick?"

"..." Ruri simply hurled her spellbook at her.

"Is this your magic?" Aio dodged effortlessly, already bracing against the wall to transmute more arrows—but in that split-second gap, Ruri lunged desperately forward and slapped her shoulder.

"You—" Aio's words froze on her lips as her entire body instantly solidified, encased in ice.

"Naya! I've frozen her!" Ruri shouted desperately.

Naya stared at the frost-covered statue that was Aio.

"She... seems dead."

"Eh?" Ruri examined the icy figure. "It's not just Freezing Touch? The spell description said: 'Turn the first touched target's body temperature from positive to negative.' So that's what it meant..."

From 37°C to -37°C...

"The spell wasn't wrong. She's frozen solid. And dead..."

"I had to catch her off guard to touch her. That's why I needed your help. That was my plan."

"...Ruri, your acting was incredible...!"

"I wasn't entirely acting."

To be continued.