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{3rd Pov}
Subaru reappeared dozens of miles away from the city, ensuring that there was no nearby settlement or population center in sight.
As soon as he stabilized in the air and landed on the ground, he felt a splitting pain in his head, as if a hot needle was being jammed into his brain.
'Shit! My Psychic reserves are down to barely 20%!' Subaru thought, gritting his teeth as he reverted back into his human form.
His body ached, his mind throbbed, and his energy levels were dangerously low.
He stumbled a little as his feet hit the ground, feeling the heaviness of fatigue start to settle in now that the adrenaline had begun to wear off.
From the outside, to any observer watching their battle, it might've looked like Subaru had been dominating Reinhardt.
After all, in the final exchange, the only visible injury he had received was a broken lip. Compared to the relentless crushing, burning, and slicing Reinhardt had endured, Subaru looked practically untouched.
But that impression couldn't have been further from the truth.
The only reason he had managed to hold his own in that monstrous clash was due to the simultaneous and extreme use of three different energy systems—Magic, Ki, and Psychic energy—stacked together to push his physical and metaphysical capabilities to an extraordinary level.
Strength, speed, durability, reflexes, sensory perception—every stat had been pushed beyond their natural limits. He had become a living storm of destruction.
The cost? Immense.
His Psychic energy was nearly depleted, sitting at a dangerously low 20%. That wasn't just a numerical value—it meant that his mental stability, focus, and fine control over abilities like teleportation, telekinesis, and energy shaping were critically compromised.
His Ki reserves, which he had channeled heavily in that final confrontation with Reid's conceptual slash, had also dropped, now sitting below 30%.
The only thing that remained decently stocked was his vast pool of Magic, which was still over 60%.
As for his Aura, a separate form of energy used mostly for strengthening his healing and sense-enhancement abilities, it still retained roughly 70% of its original intensity—mostly because he had used it sparingly during the fight, reserving it for only a few critical moments and primarily for healing Beatrice earlier.
Despite how it looked, Subaru knew this battle wasn't something he could keep up forever.
He had made Reinhardt suffer. He had forced him to feel pain—true pain. Pain that Reinhardt likely hadn't experienced in his entire life.
Subaru had made him feel fear, even if only momentarily, and pushed him to the brink. He had made him remember what it felt like to be mortal. To be vulnerable. To be hurt.
And above all, he had avenged the anguish and agony Reinhardt had inflicted on Beatrice—Betty. Subaru had succeeded in making him feel just a fraction of the torment she had experienced.
That alone had made part of this battle worth it.
But reality was setting in fast. Subaru understood a hard truth now.
If the fight became a war of attrition, he would lose.
Reinhardt didn't just have monstrous talent or combat power. He had something far worse—something Subaru didn't.
He had the support of the world itself.
The system, the divine structure, the will of Od Laguna—all of it favored Reinhardt. Every time he died, he came back stronger, more protected, more overpowered.
The man was cheating at existence itself.
Subaru's breathing steadied as he stood up straight, brushing off the dust from his clothes. He looked up toward the horizon, feeling the surge of pressure that signaled Reinhardt's approach. It wouldn't be long before they clashed again.
Thousands had already died in the wake of their last battle. It couldn't be allowed to happen again.
"I guess… it's time I start using my trump cards, huh?" Subaru muttered under his breath, his tone low but resolute. He could feel the familiar aura closing in on him, the overwhelming presence that screamed of Reinhardt's approach. The battle wasn't over.
Subaru's shadow began to change—becoming deeper, darker, almost abysmally black. It spread unnaturally across the ground before a crack suddenly tore through the very fabric of space-time. A void ripped open beneath him, as if the universe itself was being cut apart.
From that rift emerged a sword—a blade forged from pure darkness, completely absent of light. The sword radiated a suffocating pressure, its presence alone distorting the space around it. It was no ordinary weapon.
It was the Yin Sword—one of the Ten Great Legendary Swords.
A sword capable of cutting through time and space itself.
Subaru gripped the hilt tightly as he lifted the blade to his side. He could feel its weight—not physical, but metaphysical—pressing on his soul.
Using this weapon wasn't just a matter of swinging it.
It required energy, focus, and sheer fucking will.
'Listen up, my spirits!' Subaru spoke telepathically to the elemental spirits bound to him. 'Channel all your mana into me right now! I don't have enough Ki left to boost myself properly, so I'm going to need to enhance my physical capabilities using solely magic—at least until I recover enough to combine both again!'
'Okay, father!' multiple youthful voices responded in unison, each one eager and devoted.
Suddenly, an enormous mana vacuum formed around Subaru—one that was easily comparable in size and density to the mana presence that usually surrounded Reinhardt.
The atmosphere distorted, and even the clouds above responded to the sudden pressure as an absurd amount of mana was pulled in from the surrounding environment.
The origin of the absorption was none other than Subaru and the dozens of contracted spirits now operating in sync with him.
The sheer magnitude of the mana draw was unnatural.
If Subaru had attempted to physically reinforce his body using only his own mana reserves—forcing that much energy through his personal gate—the result would have been catastrophic.
The strain on his gate, even with its already impressive capacity, would've been enough to shatter it.
With how rapidly Reinhardt was increasing in power, the only viable method to cope with his ever-rising strength would be for Subaru to scale up his mana usage proportionally.
But doing that using just his own gate? That was suicidal. His gate would combust under the load.
But now, that concern was gone. He had found a workaround.
With every single one of his contracted spirits acting as pseudo-gates, the burden was no longer on him alone.
Mana flowed not just through his body but through the gates of his spirits.
Most notably, Gloria—his most potent and mature spirit—possessed a gate that was actually more efficient and more durable than Subaru's own.
Her presence made a massive difference in regulating the mana flow.
Each spirit absorbed, filtered, and redirected mana into Subaru like a perfectly tuned machine. The cumulative result?
A mana absorption rate that exceeded anything he'd ever achieved before.
This new method allowed Subaru to massively increase his magical output, capacity, and reinforcement potential without placing any serious stress on his own gate.
The trade-off now was his physical body.
He was still a human being, and while the energy itself wouldn't overload his gate anymore, his muscles, bones, and organs were under pressure from the extreme internal reinforcement.
But even that wasn't enough to stop him.
By strategically applying both Ki and Aura, he could enhance the structural integrity of his body—toughening it just enough to withstand the boost from the mana coursing through him.
His veins bulged across his arms and neck as the power surged within, but his body held firm. Not only was he getting stronger—he was now doing so without heavily relying on Ki, which allowed him to conserve one of his most depleted resources.
Then, like a crashing meteor, Reinhardt arrived in front of him.
The red-haired knight stopped in his tracks, eyes narrowing as he laid eyes on the ominous weapon Subaru now held in his hand—a blade formed entirely of concentrated darkness, a weapon that warped the air around it and radiated a suffocating presence.
Reinhardt's instincts immediately screamed. He recognized the weapon on sight. "One of the Great Legendary Swords…" he thought.
But he didn't flinch.
The recognition didn't stop him.
To him, there was no sword greater than the Dragon Sword Reid. He had full faith that the weapon in his hand was supreme.
Regardless of what blade Subaru wielded, Reinhardt was determined to end this battle, once and for all.
To bring Subaru to justice for the atrocities he believed the man had committed.
(A/N: Ayooo bro you just murdered thousands a moment ago, just because they are Lugunicans you don't consider them important? Fuck you! I will sue you for terrorism!)
Neither warrior spoke a word. The silence was louder than any declaration.
The moment their eyes met again, they moved.
Blades collided in an explosion of force, creating shockwaves so intense that the ground beneath them cracked and the air itself screamed.
Sonic booms echoed across the desolate land as their swords clashed at a speed that human eyes couldn't possibly follow.
In just a few seconds, they exchanged hundreds of attacks—slashes, stabs, parries, counter-swings—each movement carried enough force to annihilate anything caught in its path.
Reinhardt pushed himself further, expending even more Divine Protections in real time.
The very fabric of reality bent around him.
At this moment, the world itself had entered the battle on his side.
Divine Protections were being ripped away from people across the globe and transferred directly to Reinhardt's body, sacrificing them as fuel to elevate him further.
It was no longer just Reinhardt fighting Subaru—it was Od Laguna's champion, backed by the global system.
But even with all of that power being channeled into him, Reinhardt slowly realized something terrifying.
He was losing ground.
In the flurry of exchanges, despite all the Divine Protections empowering him, Reinhardt found himself being pressured, cornered, outclassed—at least in swordsmanship.
"What the hell…? Impossible!" Reinhardt's mind screamed in disbelief. "How can his swordsmanship surpass mine?!"
The Divine Protection of the Sword Saint was supposed to draw out the maximum martial potential from its wielder, even if they were otherwise unskilled.
That was already incredible. But in Reinhardt's case, it was layered with the Divine Protection of the Weapon God—making his mastery over weapons, especially swords, unprecedented.
In all of history, only the original Sword Saint himself had ever surpassed him.
And yet here was Subaru.
A man with no Divine Protection. No legendary title backing his swordplay. No system-borne gift boosting his combat ability.
Outclassing him.
Strike for strike, Subaru's technique was sharper, cleaner, and more unpredictable. His movements didn't feel like they came from training—but from experience, improvisation, pain, and survival.
(A/N: Yeah from copying Reina's swordswomanship, haha kettle meet the pot! moment!)
But instead of despair, Reinhardt… smiled.
A wide, genuine grin formed on his face—one of pure, unfiltered excitement.
When in his entire life had he ever been pushed beyond his limits like this?
When had he ever felt like victory wasn't guaranteed?
For the first time in his existence, Reinhardt wanted something with every fiber of his being. He craved victory.
He wanted to win not because he was destined to, not because the world willed it—but because it was earned.
He called out to Od Laguna.
He begged the world to give him what he needed. To give him a Divine Protection strong enough to end Subaru.
And the world… responded.
Instantly, thousands of people across the globe were stripped of their Divine Protections.
In addition, ten percent of the world's essence itself was sacrificed, converted into pure metaphysical power.
All of it was compressed and refined into a single Divine Protection—the most powerful one ever created.
Reinhardt had just acquired the Divine Protection of the World Champion.
Its effect?
A flat 1000% increase to all of his abilities—as long as he remained within the world of Od Laguna.
Subaru's eyes narrowed as he dodged a swing from Reinhardt's sword by teleporting away at the last possible second. If he had delayed by even half a second, he would've died on the spot.
The blow tore a gash in the earth miles long.
Reinhardt stopped and raised his sword slowly, eyes locked on Subaru.
"Natsuki Subaru… I shall now end this battle with my final attack," he declared, his tone uncharacteristically calm—cold, even.
Right now, Reinhardt was at his absolute peak.
All his Divine Protections had been amplified tenfold. He had access to every conceivable advantage—speed, strength, reflexes, stamina, healing, defense, instinct, swordsmanship, and luck. No one in the world could stop him now.
Not even if Subaru was at full power.
And Subaru knew it.
Even if his energy reserves were full—even if he wasn't already depleted—he'd still only be able to hold Reinhardt back, not defeat him.
That's how overwhelming this version of Reinhardt was.
But Subaru didn't flinch. He didn't back down. His gaze remained steady.
Because to him, this war had already been won.
Because the war had been won—the moment Natsuki Subaru laid eyes on Reid for the first time since encountering Reinhardt.
To be continued...