Extra's Ascent

While Aldrich was busy imposing his non-negotiable offer on Aydin, giving him a chance at redemption under veiled coercion, Valeria was using that same fleeting moment to surge ever forward toward her objective.

She had finally crossed the uneven barricade of raised bricks, each one a stumbling block that slowed her momentum. And now she lept and hovered across the last brick to arrive at her destination.

Unlike the chaotic terrain she had just battled through, littered with bricks of uneven heights and treacherous footing, the path to her destination stretched ahead in a flawless plain. A vast, empty lane stood before her, offering a direct passage to her goal.

Yet at the far end of that unobstructed road, stationed calmly within the goal area, were two adversaries, silent, unmoving, but unmistakably formidable.

They were girls, just like her, but their mere presence invoked an involuntary reaction. Even from a distance, their posture radiated authority. Valeria felt it settle upon her chest like a vice.

Her breath faltered.

Panic and uncertainty collided within her mind, racing faster than her footsteps. Countless mental simulations ignited like sparks, strategies, scenarios, desperate attempts to forge a winning path.

But regardless of the permutations she devised, the outcome remained heartbreakingly consistent.

Defeat.

Then came a voice, a sudden call from behind.

"You called!"

She turned instantly. Relief bloomed across her face.

"Opius!" she exclaimed, gratitude spilling from her lips.

Opius, the one previously restrained by Aydin's peculiar ability, had somehow freed himself from the chains that had dismissed him from the challenge.

How he had managed to escape didn't matter to Valeria in the slightest. Right now, his timely return was all she could hope for, and she embraced that fact without hesitation.

Yet deep within, an unsettling truth lingered. His arrival wasn't salvation, it was an emotional crutch. A subconscious escape from confronting the harsh reality that, even together, their odds remained bleak.

'No,' she thought, steeling herself. 'We can do this. If we synchronize, if we strike with purpose... we can overcome them.'

A fragile belief, perhaps even a delusion, but delusions could be powerful when wielded by the determined.

And if life thrived on uncertainty, then perhaps effort could carve a predictable future out of chaos.

That was Valeria's intent. Not to retreat, but to bend reality to her will and forge certainty from grit.

"What's the plan?" Opius asked, matching her stride.

Charging in blindly was a fool's errand. What they needed now was strategy, an approach both subtle and deliberate.

A distraction? Perhaps she could have Opius confront them head-on while she darted toward the goal post.

No, too obvious. A tactic so transparent would unravel within moments.

"We stay together," she decided. "Turn it into a two-on-one."

Her meaning was clear, they would focus entirely on a single opponent, using that confrontation to create an opening, a bait and switch. The other adversary would either fall into the trap or be bypassed entirely.

She turned her gaze toward the two defenders. Her eyes flicked from one to the other, back and forth in rapid succession.

Which of them could be baited?

Which one posed the lesser threat, the one more likely to falter under combined pressure?

"Fiona Helmswoth!" she declared. "She's the one. We'll lock her down!"

Her decision had been made. Between the two, Fiona seemed the more viable target.

The other, Saldrich Aldaman, was an entirely different matter. Those eyes icy and unreadable mirrored those of Aldrich Aldaman himself. The same cold intensity that stood against a second-year student. The same stare wielded by the youngest current candidate for the title of LORD.

And more than that, her Bloodline Art had the impact. Not merely in potential, but in legacy. Proven, tested and formidable.

Fiona, by contrast, seemed marginally more manageable. Not weak by any means but in this moment, the lesser of two looming threats.

Yet Valeria couldn't have been more wrong in her assessment.

Together, she and Opius shifted their focus, veering ever so slightly toward Fiona, completely forsaking Saldrich in their intent.

"Wrong choice," a voice answered with chilling certainty.

Fiona had seen through the tactic in an instant.

Saldrich had, too.

Without delay, Fiona stepped forward with eerie composure, positioning herself dead-center in the path of the oncoming pair, daring them to continue.

She raised her arms, hands coming together with startling precision.

SLAP!

Her palms collided, creating a resonant shockwave that blasted outward with controlled ferocity.

The ground trembled. A spiraling ripple surged forward, an invisible wave of pressure that shredded the path and launched everything in its radius backward.

Valeria and Opius were caught mid-stride, too fast for reaction, too overwhelming to brace for impact.

The next moment, their bodies were airborne, flung helplessly through space before slamming into the brick wall behind them with spine-rattling force. The collision cracked the silence with a dreadful thud.

"I think that was too much..." Saldrich remarked, watching the aftermath unfold with detached concern.

"Yeah, maybe I went overboard," Fiona admitted, a touch of guilt bleeding into her voice.

She hadn't meant to unleash such force, not truly. But seeing the two of them choose her her over Saldrich as the weaker one? It might or might not have stung her a bit. And she might or might not have let that sting guide her hand.

Valeria's skull struck the bricks with a sickening crack, echoing ominously. Pain surged through her skull like wildfire. Dizziness clouded her vision. Her consciousness threatened to slip away, but she wouldn't surrender.

She refused to collapse.

Teeth clenched, muscles trembling, she forced herself upright. Her body screamed in protest, yet she rose, defiant.

"Opius... are you still with me?" she asked, her eyes locked ahead, unwavering.

The two opponents began to approach, not running, but strolling. No need for urgency. No fear of retaliation.

"Y-Yeah... I think so," Opius answered, staggering to his feet. Blood dripped steadily from his nose, his frame shaking from the blow.

"What the hell is she?" he muttered, both awed and terrified.

The realization had struck them both now. This wasn't a mismatch of tactics or confidence.

They were just way out of their leagues. Is what it is.