Azure sat across the table as Aqua retrieved Lira's emerald. Azure stared at it with her eyes wide; she had witnessed who this gemstone was.
I need to test the spell. She scratched the bottom of her chin as she thought about it.
There were many ways to test the spell; however, most would render Lira useless after one mere test. She needed to find a way to nail the perfect counter to Rolan at the first try.
Her mind wandered, and the clouds that obscured her mind's eyes cleared. She could use the interaction he heart of the phoenix had. When the body hop happened, the heart of the phoenix activated and forced Rolan out of Sheira's body.
If she created a body and forced Lira to body hop to it, and that body contained the heart, then she would be ejected; however, if her spell worked, she would have been purged by the heart.
While she didn't want her to die without her spell proving itself, the fact that the phoenix would be able to purge her meant that it worked, and Lira's use came to an end.
However, Aqua did not wish to rely on the [Heart of the Phoenix] for when a body hop happened.
Her hand disappeared into the void and soon after pulled out a similar gem; however, this one was black in color.
"Oh, what's that gem?" Azure leaned over the table as she inspected it.
"This is an Onyx, a rather beautiful gem… too beautiful for the person who was imprisoned inside."
"Was?"
"I have wiped both his mind and soul; only this gem remains as his 'body', which would be a perfect vessel for Lira."
"What are you intending to do?"
Aqua clicked her tongue, "I plan to force Lira to body hop into this gem, which will be blessed with the heart of the phoenix."
Azure nodded with ignorance clear on her face, yet she did not wish for Aqua to think of her as someone stupid, especially after she had been invited to watch the experiment.
Much to her fortune, Aqua continued. "Lira and Rolan's trick lets them split their mind; however, if my spell is successful, it will pull the rest of the mind into the current shell, which will then be purged by the heart. This will allow me not to wipe the mind of every single vessel they have access to, leaving only the soul, which by itself won't do much without some serious tampering."
The champion nodded enthusiastically, yet she couldn't help but feel terrified of Aqua's cold explanation. She had spoken of dealing with Lira with such cruel efficiency that it deeply scared her, yet she quickly dismissed it.
The woman next to her was Aqua, her heroine and one of her dearest friends. Azure refused to be scared of her, no matter what. She knew that Aqua would never hurt her, despite treating the enemy with cruelty.
It's not that I blame her, but to think she would get so angry on my behalf. Azure blushed slightly as she placed her hands between her legs and gripped her dress.
Aqua placed two gems next to each other, while Emerald hummed, the onyx remained completely silent.
She wrapped her fingers around the onyx and brought it before her eyes. "[Heart of the Phoenix]." The onyx glowed bright orange for a moment, and a flicker of flame nestled in its core.
"Good, now to Lira." She gripped the emerald and placed it next to the onyx.
"Now time to force her to jump into this vessel." Her hand glowed pale blue as she activated one of the new spells. It worked much like [Dimensional Lock], however, it was much smaller in scale and targeted Lira's trick's connection to the other faraway vessels.
She had spent many nights creating and fine-tuning it, and now it was time to put it to the real test.
[False Mind], the space distorted around the two gems, and it formed a small translucent bubble. The two gems were now considered their own separate world.
Aqua's hand hovered above Lira.
"Time to see face to face, snake." Aqua grinned as she was transported into Lira's mindscape.
The rooms around her collapsed, and the darkness quickly replaced the opulence that was the former servant's chamber.
The darkness churned and twisted as it turned green.
Soon, she was surrounded by the emerald shell that was Lira's mindscape.
The transmutation of Lira had trapped her in a prison where she could not escape. It was truly poetic that someone flaunting their mastery of the mind would end up with their own consciousness trapped.
The pain Lira felt coursed through her like a drug. She screamed, yet she had no voice.
The mindscape resembled a crystallised city, much like the emerald outside; the forest, earth, and even the very sky were made of emerald crystal.
She forced mana around her to swirl and rush outward. The mindscape that belonged to Lira was of no importance. Even if she had completely destroyed and destabilized her, Aqua would not have felt any remorse.
A wave of impossibly powerful magic spread around her like an explosion. The moment it connected to the Emerald City, it was flattened in an instant. There was no resistance as Aqua's power cut through it like paper.
She stepped forward, her feet connected to the surface that was as smooth as a mirror. In the distance, she saw Lira. She, too, was an emerald statue, yet as Aqua approached, she could feel the pained shrieks coming from it.
I feel bad for her in a way. Yet as she approached the statue, her feeling of regret dissipated. Lira was an enemy, and an enemy needed to be dealt with efficiently and painfully.
Her hand gently caressed the shrieking statue.
Crack.
A small crack appeared on the statue, then it grew in size until it formed a web that encompassed the entirety of Lira's body.
Crackle.
A powerful blinding light erupted from the cracks, and then the smooth gemstone skin shattered.
As the light subsided, the person who was freed gasped for air and fell on the mirror-like surface.
"Lira~" Aqua crouched in front of Lira, her form fully unleashed. There was no point in hiding it in the mindscape. After all, Lira was about to die when her purpose had been fulfilled.
Lira's eyes widened as she fell on her back and crawled back, "Stay away from me, monster!"
"Monster? I am no monster." Aqua's lips widened into a wry smile, "Or perhaps, to people like you, I am."
Aqua approached slowly and without any care for Lira's scrambling.
Her fingers wrapped around Lira's throat. "You are a body hopper, are you not?"
The knowing expression that Lira made answered everything that Aqua needed to know.
The vile woman dared claw at Aqua's arm as she was lifted by her throat, yet her skin was as hard as diamond.
Lira clawed and kicked, but her efforts were for naught as Aqua's hand tightened around her throat.
Her form sizzled and charred.
"Let's see if my spell works ~ [Poison the Well]." The faint trace that led to Lira's original body lit up like a sun in the sky.
While originally the [Poison the Well] was merely meant to locate the original body without doing anything further, Aqua had decided to improve it even further by making it act like a leash that would pull the real mind into the host.
Her grip tightened as the crimson flame sparked around her hand.
Lira screamed in pain; her voice made the mirror-like surface crack, yet she was helpless. The crimson flame flared and consumed Lira's body in its entirety.
The very moment that Lira was consumed, the mindscape collapsed, ejecting Aqua back into the real world.
The emerald cracked and then crumbled into emerald dust. However, the onyx that was inert until now flared to life.
She must have felt relieved for a moment. A sadistic smile formed on Aqua's face.
However, such joy would have been extinguished at the very moment that Lira realised she had been trapped in a different 'body'.
"It worked!" Aqua exclaimed excitedly. Her eyes were locked onto the onyx, which was quickly enveloped in the orange egg of the phoenix.
Her eyes glowed as she followed Lira. She could not run; the moment that her body hopped, her real mind had been pulled into the onyx.
Yet it was not over, when she had taken over the mindless onyx, she was a foreign body, and was quickly expunged by the heart.
This means if I force her to take over a body and then use [Poison the Well], I can burn her without relying on the heart of the phoenix. She nodded proudly.
Rolan would not be able to escape next time; he would have been burned and put through agony he had deserved for hurting Sheira. Her eyes wandered to Azure, who still followed her every move with eyes glistening in excitement.
I should get something for her. It did not sit right with her to not return a favor for the gift Azure had given her.
Aqua wrapped her fingers around the onyx and chucked it into the void, closely followed by the spell document.
"Done with that." She turned to Azure and smiled.
Azure forced a smile and nodded. She could not judge Aqua's methods, after all, Aqua had done it because she cared for her, thus she was happy.
The red-haired girl leaned back, and her eyes widened for a moment as she retrieved something from her void storage.
She could only assume what gemstone someone like Azu would like, but considering what would fit her love of green color, an emerald would have been perfect.
"Azu…" Aqua leaned forward slightly.
Azure tilted her head slightly as her ears twitched. "Y…yes?"
She slid her clasped hands and opened them to reveal a large emerald necklace. "This is a gift for you."
Azure blinked slowly. The room went silent.
However, when Aqua looked into her, she shook her head, "I can't accept this!"
"It really is nothing, I thought it would fit you." Aqua smiled warmly as she stood up and approached Azure.
"I… if you say so… who am I to deny it." Her face turned red as she stared at the floor.
Aqua stretched the necklace and gently placed it around Azure's neck. "You bought me a gift, it's only natural for me to pay back in kind." Aqua smiled as she returned to her seat.
However, Azure couldn't turn her eyes away from the beautiful emerald jewelry that she had been gifted. She placed it in her palm and brought it to her chest.
"I will cherish it forever." Her eyes became watery as she thanked Aqua.
"I am so glad you like it." Aqua smiled. She wanted to give a token of appreciation to Azure, and something like an emerald necklace truly would fit her.
She nodded enthusiastically. "I like anything from you!"
A small chuckle escaped Aqua's lips. Azure was truly adorable and was deserving of the gift, despite it being a rather powerful piece of jewelry.
"I think I should return to my duties… but would it be ok if I visited you later today?" Azure sheepishly asked as she rubbed her legs together.
"Of course, Azu. My doors are always open to you."
Azure's smile beamed as she pushed herself up, "Then that's the deal. I will come back later! I want to chat more."
The only response she received was a nod, yet from Aqua, it was all she needed. The champion tried to hide her blush, yet it was obvious even to Aqua.
She is so adorable when she blushes like that. Her lips stretched into a wide smile. Seeing Azure happy made her feel comfortable warmth in her heart.
"Until we meet again, Azu." With a wave, Azure made her way out of Aqua's chambers. Despite wishing to spend more time with her heroine, her duties had to be fulfilled; otherwise, her home would inevitably have to rely on Aqua once again.