After separating the two with a wide-range attack, Stella immediately charged toward Roy, while Okita pursued Claudia.
Even though she had effortlessly crushed the combination of Julis and Kirin, Stella knew full well that the strength of Roy and Claudia's duo was far beyond what Julis and the others could match. She had prepared a flawless strategy before the match even began.
The plan was simple: have Okita, the faster of the two, swiftly take down Claudia, the weaker of their opponents, and then combine their strength to deal with the most troublesome opponent—Roy.
During this time, Stella would hold Roy back. Given her power and firepower, she believed that even if she couldn't defeat him, she should at least be able to stall him.
"Devour my enemies, Hellfang of the Inferno Dragon!"
The moment she locked onto Roy, Stella swung her hand, conjuring seven flaming dragon heads that spread out to encircle him from all directions.
Trapped by the seven flaming dragon heads, Roy couldn't immediately break free to assist Claudia.
Yet, Roy's expression remained unchanged, showing no trace of urgency. Facing the seven flaming dragon heads closing in on him, he gripped his sword in one hand and clenched his fist with the other, charging straight ahead. With a single slash, he cleaved the first dragon head in two, then followed up with a backhanded punch that shattered another into countless sparks.
"He can smash my Inferno Dragon's Fang with his bare hands?!"
Stella's heart pounded in shock.
She had always known Roy's physical abilities were monstrous, but seeing it firsthand was still overwhelming. To crush a three-meter-tall flaming dragon head with a bare fist—even if it was reinforced with astral power—was chilling. No one would willingly face such a monster unless absolutely necessary.
"But how will you deal with the remaining five?!"
As Roy destroyed the second dragon head, the third and fourth lunged at him from the front and back, while the remaining three took positions from other angles.
Roy sliced through the third dragon head charging from the front, but the one behind him had already opened its maw, seemingly ready to crush his skull in the next instant. Yet, with a single push of his foot, he spun midair as if he had eyes on the back of his head, dodging the attack and delivering a spinning kick that blasted the dragon head apart.
Upon landing, seeing the last three dragon heads closing in simultaneously, he dashed toward one of them, his radiant blade slicing clean through its head as he broke free from the encirclement. Without pause, he shattered the final two with another slash and punch.
For a moment, Stella was stunned. Had he really dismantled all seven of her flaming dragon heads so effortlessly?
This was her trump card, second only to her ultimate technique!
After obliterating all seven dragon heads, Roy turned his gaze toward Stella, his expression devoid of emotion, only sharp and unyielding. Then, with a single step, prana erupted beneath his feet.
"Damn it!"
The instant their eyes met, Stella's heart lurched. She snapped back to reality and immediately raised her golden greatsword to block her chest.
Clang!
A deafening metallic clash rang out, reverberating painfully in the ears.
Stella felt her arms go numb, as if they no longer existed, and she was sent staggering back over a dozen steps.
"Hellfang of the Inferno Dragon!"
Stella was utterly shocked and didn't hesitate to summon seven more flaming dragon heads, charging toward Roy once again.
Even as Roy became entangled with the dragon heads once more, she didn't dare lower her guard in the slightest.
"He's as strong as a monster!"
Her heart still raced with fear—had she summoned the dragon heads even a moment later, Roy might have already closed the distance and defeated her.
Countless people throughout her life had faced her overwhelming firepower with terror, calling her a monster. Now, the tables had turned—she was the one awestruck by another's power, the one marveling at someone else's monstrous strength.
Seeing the seven dragon heads diminishing at a visible rate, Stella swung her sword again, unleashing another seven roaring dragon heads to join the assault on Roy.
Even after summoning over twenty dragon heads in succession, Stella showed no signs of exhaustion, appearing completely composed.
In the infirmary, Julis watched the broadcast of Stella's performance, her eyes darkening slightly.
Just how much prana does she have?
When they fought, had Stella truly given her all?
Julis felt an inexplicable unease, even beginning to doubt her previous judgment. She had thought Stella's total prana might be close to Roy's, but now, she wondered if Stella's reserves had already surpassed his.
On the stage.
Despite being besieged by over a dozen flaming dragon heads, Roy remained completely unruffled.
He had activated the "Perception" state, granting him a 360-degree perspective that allowed him to "see" every dragon head surrounding him—front, back, sides, and even above. He effortlessly dodged their attacks, occasionally slicing one or two apart with his blade, never appearing cornered. Instead, he moved with effortless grace.
The Perception state truly shone when facing multiple opponents.
"Still, Claudia won't last much longer..."
Roy pondered this.
Dividing his attention, he was also monitoring the other battle through Okita's perspective.
Claudia found it strange.
Okita's strength far surpassed her own. Even with her newfound ability to explosively amplify her prana for speed, she could barely evade Okita's relentless attacks.
No—could they even be called relentless?
Claudia felt something was off. For some reason, at the critical moments when she was pushed to her limit, Okita's blade always seemed to veer slightly off course, allowing her to narrowly escape each deadly strike.
Every time Claudia considered using Pan-Dora's remaining capacity in desperation, Okita would make such a "mistake." Once or twice might have been coincidence, but after three times in a row, Claudia was stunned.
What was going on?
Were they genuine mistakes?
Or was Roy involved somehow?
Remembering Roy's calm demeanor before the match, Claudia grew momentarily dazed. Had the two struck some secret deal? Why wouldn't he tell her?
Could it be... some kind of physical transaction?!
Though Okita had "erred" multiple times, no one else seemed to notice anything amiss.
After all, it was common knowledge that Claudia possessed an Orga Lux capable of predicting the future. Wasn't it perfectly normal for her to foresee and evade others' attacks in advance?
She had never been an easy opponent to defeat in the first place. Both Sylvia and Stella thought so, never suspecting that Okita was holding back—they simply assumed Claudia had used her future-predicting ability.
No one knew the truth.
Everyone had been fooled by Roy's act.
"I wonder how long it'll take Souji to defeat Claudia... But now's my chance!"
Meanwhile, Stella watched as Roy was temporarily restrained by the flaming dragon heads. Hesitation flickered in her eyes for just a moment before resolve hardened within them.
Her Lævateinn couldn't hold Roy back at all. Contrary to her initial expectations, she hadn't anticipated that even this many dragon heads wouldn't be enough to suppress him. Given time, he would easily break free from her blockade.
In that case, she might as well go all out while she still had him temporarily trapped!
The decision crystallized in Stella's mind in an instant.
Raising her golden greatsword, intricately carved with dragon motifs, high above her head, she poured her mana into the blade without restraint. In an instant, an overwhelming radiance and heat erupted from her entire being.
"Let the infernal flames pierce the heavens and reduce all to ashes—Dragon King's Blazing Heaven and Earth!!!"