"Brilliant Radiance!"
A blinding white light rained down on Shido, engulfing him in holy energy.
"It hit him!" Shalltear exclaimed, elated that her spell had landed. But her joy quickly crumbled when she realized Shido hadn't even flinched. He simply look at her with his charming yet dangerous eyes.
"What? No effect?" she muttered in disbelief.
Shalltear's mouth hung open in shock. Even though she knew Shido can use holy attacks and share the same element, her spell should have at least inflicted some damage. Yet it hadn't done a thing.
"Are you finished?"
As the pillar of holy light dissipated, Shido step forward calmly and dusted hi shoulder as if he just disregard Shalltear's attack.
As much as she had to admit that Shido was undeniably handsome, Shalltear couldn't ignore how infuriating his attitude was.
To Shido's surprise, she didn't immediately launch another attack. Instead, she kept her distance, watching him closely with sharp and calculating eyes. It was clear she was contemplating her next move.
However, Shido didn't make a move on her. He simply waited, calmly observing, curious to see what she was planning.
Shalltear fixed her gaze on Shido, her teeth grinding together.
'Shido may have only recently joined Nazarick, but I still don't fully understand the extent of his abilities. One thing's certain though, his specialty lies in the holy and dark elements, judging from his battle with that evil tree… and even against Demiurge and Ainz-sama.'
'His incredible affinity with both holy and dark magic, his devastating skills, that spear capable of nullifying spells… and above all, that mysterious ability to summon a giant phantom…'
Just the thought made Shalltear break into a cold sweat. Defeating Shido felt even more harder than facing Ainz himself.
'If I want to defeat him, I'll have to unleash powerful skills that can completely overwhelm him. And that mana… huh? what the heck is going on?! It's still rising!'
At first, she had assumed Shido must have spent a considerable amount of mana with all the skills he had used. Yet, to her astonishment, his reserves hadn't decreased at all, instead, his mana was only growing higher, increasing at an unbelievable rate.
'...Even Ainz-sama couldn't do that.'
Shalltear swallowed hard, nerves tightening as she realized Shido's mana was still at its peak, while more than half of her own mana and HP had already been drained. She was still frantically trying to figure out how to deal with his monstrous reserves when Shido's calm voice cut through her thoughts.
"Are you not coming? If so… then I'll come to you. Sorry Shalltear, but I'll have to be a little rough on you."
"Huh?
With those words, Shido slowly raised his hand toward the sky.
"World Isolation Barrier."
A mysterious force surged from Shido's body before vanishing in an instant.
Glancing at her surroundings, Shalltear immediately recognized it, it was the same skill that platinum-armored man had used before. Just like then, she wouldn't be able to leave the barrier without spending time to break free. She didn't understand why Shido could use the same skill, nevertheless it still heightened her caution.
Her grip on the Spuit Lance tightened as she fixed her gaze back on him. But the moment her eyes shifted to Shido's position, her expression froze.
Shido was gone.
"You let your guard down."
'Shit!'
The whisper brushed against her ear, sending a jolt down her spine. Shalltear spun around, swinging her lance with all her strength, but she was too late.
"Yad HAor."
Shido thrust out his palm with the holy reiryoku concentrated within it. The instant it touched Shalltear's armor, the white orb in his hand burst outward, expanding into a massive sphere of radiant light that swallowed her whole.
Shido's voice was soft, like the song of an angel, warm and gentle enough to stir a sense of love in anyone. Yet at the same time, it carried the allure of a devil, tempting women to fall from grace.
But to Shalltear, it was nothing but pure terror. She grit her teeth and endured the overwhelming attack with all her strength.
"Arrrrrggggghhh!!!"
Though Shalltear herself could wield holy magic, she was far from immune to it. As an undead, holy attacks were her natural weakness. However, because of her crazy magic resistance towards holy magic. Only devastatingly strong holy magic could truly harm her…
Like Shido's attack just now.
"BOOOOOOOOM!!!"
A deafening explosion shook the battlefield, reducing the site to a ruined wasteland filled with dust and smoke. Through the haze, a lone figure was sent flying away before crashing violently against the edge of the barrier.
Even without seeing clearly, Shido knew it was Shalltear.
"Life Essence."
Activating the skill, he quickly scanned her condition. Her HP was dangerously low, yet not completely depleted. Without hesitation, Shido used Flash Steps once more, instantly reappearing above her battered body.
Of course, Shalltear noticed Shido appear above her. Without hesitation, she unleashed a spell to force him back, even for a moment.
"Maximize Magic, Vermillion Nova!"
"Hmmp!"
Shido didn't even bother with the attack and just simply summoned Gae Dreag from his inventory and directly cut and nullify the spell the moment it hit him. But, that was enough for Shalltear to keep her distance and recover.
"Greater Teleportation!"
But of course, Shido had no intention of letting her recover so easily.
Gripping Gae Dreag tightly, he hurled the spear with such force it nearly created a sonic boom.
"Swish!"
"Wall of Stone!"
Shalltear, who had just gained some distance, widened her eyes as the spear came hurtling toward her. In a rush, she cast another spell causing her MP dipping lower again as the stone barrier rose in front of her.
Yet the sheer force behind the spear shattered the stone wall almost instantly, giving Shalltear no chance to rest.
As the weapon closed in, aiming straight for her heart, she found herself in a dilemma. But Shalltear was no ordinary fighter, she was the most powerful Floor Guardian, second only to Albedo's sister. With no choice left, she cast aside all hesitation and went all out.
"Einherjar!"
A white figure suddenly materialized in front of Shalltear just as the stone wall crumbled, intercepting the spear in her place.
"Hahaha! Don't blame me for going all out, Shido. Blame your luck for cornering me instead."
"Oh-hoh…"
Shido's eyes narrowed with curiosity at the figure that had withstood his full-force strike. It was an avatar, almost identical to Shalltear herself. He wasn't ignorant of this technique, he recognized it instantly and already knew a fair bit about its abilities.
It was essentially a copy of Shalltear, complete with a full set of equipment and several of her skills. The only drawback was its inability to use magic, but even so, it was still powerful enough to take down level 60 opponents with ease.
Shido had to admit, it was a useful skill, perfect for stalling and defending, just as Shalltear was doing now.
She let out a maniacal laugh before commanding Einherjar to strike. The avatar quickly lunged at Shido with relentless swings and thrusts of its lance, but he slipped evaded every attack with nimble movements.
Meanwhile, Shalltear seized the opportunity to restore her strength.
"Regenerate."
"Greater Lethal."
"Summon Household."
Shalltear began casting spell after spell to restore her hp causing a green light to flash repeatedly across her body as her HP slowly climbed back up. To fasten her recovery, she summoned different kinds of familiar and began mercilessly stabbing them with her Spuit Lance, draining their life force to fuel her recovery.
Seeing this, Shido who was facing Einherjar turned speechless.
'This is just cheating! What kind of broken weapon has lifesteal like that?'
He couldn't help but feel bitter, if Shalltear were fighting anyone else, this would be completely unfair. But Shido also knew he couldn't afford to drag this battle out any longer. The longer it went on, the higher the risk of something unexpected happening, like the Platinum Dragon Lord showing up to retrieve his stolen armor.
But Shido quickly dismissed the thought. That dragon was nothing but a coward, hiding away in his flying fortress under the excuse of "guarding the treasures of the Eight Greed Kings."
The Einherjar shot toward him at high speed, lance poised to pierce his head. Yet against Shido's sharp Observation Haki combined with his Flash Step, landing a hit on him was nearly impossible.
Shido casually dodge and deflected each of the avatar's strikes, patiently waiting for the perfect opening to counter.
CLANG!
CLANG!
CLANG!
The Spuit Lance and Shido's Abaddon clashed in a storm of blows, sparks scattering with every impact. Then, spotting a brief gap in its assault, Shido knocked the lance upward with a swift parry.
Seizing the moment, he followed through with a powerful side kick, sending the Einherjar flying through the air like a broken kite.
Shido blurred forward, appearing beside the battered Einherjar. Extending his arm, he opened his palm as a violet magic circle materialized. From its center, a jet-black sun the size of a ball condensed into existence, radiating ominous energy.
With a faint, almost playful smile, he pushed it forward.
"This is it, bye bye."
"Jio Graze."
The black sun struck the Einherjar head-on, blasting it from the sky. Its body plummeted like a meteor.
"BOOOOOM!"
The instant the black sun slammed the Einherjar into the ground, a massive explosion erupted. A shockwave tore through the battlefield, hurling dirt, shattered trees, and debris in every direction.
Shido watched the devastation unfold, certain the Einherjar had been completely annihilated. Now, at last, he could turn his full attention to Shalltear.
But just as Shido was about to deal with Shalltear, a black shadow streaked toward him at blinding speed. Catching the figure from the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of Shalltear's wicked grin.
"Negative Impact Shield!"
A surge of reddish-black energy burst forth, enveloping her body, and with Shido so close, the wave slammed into him as well.
"BOOM!"
The blast struck hard, sending Shido skidding back several dozen meters.
"Hahaha! What's wrong? Already at your limit?" Shalltear cackled, her laughter echoing through the barrier as she relished the sight of Shido being knocked away.
But while she laughed madly, Shido's crimson eyes never left her. He could see it clearly, Shalltear had already restored nearly half of her HP, which explained why she had the confidence to attack him so recklessly.
Still, Shido had to admit, this little girl never learned her lesson.
Shalltear, on the other hand, looked smug as she watched his seemingly troubled expression, convinced he was at a disadvantage. Earlier, after finishing her recovery, she had used Life Essence and Mana Essence to scan him again. Her eyes lit up when she discovered his MP had dropped below half, and, unlike before, it no longer showed signs of regenerating.
From this, Shalltear concluded that Shido must have used some kind of skill or item to temporarily boost his mana earlier. With her confidence renewed, she carefully waited for the right moment to strike, and when the chance came, she seized it without hesitation.