At the entrance of the Interastral Peace Corporation headquarters in the Pier Point star system.
"A millennium of resentment, how shall it be repaid?" Clara closed her eyes, putting on a deliberately sorrowful expression as she gazed upon the Corporation's magnificent gates.
Then she opened her eyes, her gaze filled with resolute determination.
"Today is the day for all debts to be settled."
She then nodded to Silver Wolf beside her. "Go. Do what you wish to do. I promise you, no one will be able to disturb you."
Hearing this, Silver Wolf didn't leave immediately, instead falling silent for a moment.
"Go on, I won't come to harm. Even an Emanator of Preservation couldn't handle me."
"...Take care of yourself." After saying this, Silver Wolf departed. After all, she still had game accounts to unban.
The world is vast, but games are what truly matter.
If 'Sparkle' failed in her fight and something happened, she'd erect a tombstone for her.
Silver Wolf silently wished Sparkle good luck in her heart.
Watching Silver Wolf disappear from view, Clara turned her eyes back to the opulent IPC headquarters. She positioned her odachi in front of her, a smile curling her lips.
'Boss Sparkle, I'm here to boost your reputation~'
The Real Sparkle: ???
"I weep for the departed..."
Slowly drawing her odachi, Clara swung it down towards the Corporation's main gates. Simultaneously, the entire star system of Pier Point was enveloped by an immense power.
If an Emanator skilled in the authority of dreams or illusions had been passing by, they would have sensed that the Pier Point star system was now sealed off by an illusion...
...
"Who are you?"
High above the Interastral Peace Corporation, Diamond hovered in the air, his expression deeply hostile as he stared at the Clara before him.
"My name is Sparkle." Clara closed her eyes and spoke softly.
"I know you don't recognize this name, but that's alright."
"Starting today, this name will be forever engraved in your heart." Clara raised her crimson odachi and unleashed another slash towards the IPC.
A violent red light descended, seemingly intent on obliterating the entire Corporation.
Yet, in the end, the light was blocked by a shimmering yellow shield.
"You... seem to be looking down on me a bit too much," Diamond said, his expression turning angry at being ignored as Clara attacked the company directly.
"You are not my match, so you cannot stop me."
"Drop the shield. Let me destroy the company."
"If you persist in your delusion, the final result will be your death at my hands, and the company's destruction as well." Clara pointed her crimson blade at Diamond, her voice cold.
"My target is not you, but the company. Leave now, and I will not stop you."
"Arrogance!" Diamond's fury erupted upon hearing Clara's words. The power of Preservation was fully unleashed, ancient energy instantly blanketing the entire star system.
First, Clara blew up the company twice, and now this 'Sparkle' has the audacity to speak of destroying it? Do you really think the Interastral Peace Corporation, that I, Diamond, am some soft pushover?
Feeling the release of Diamond's power, every employee within the IPC gazed upon him with fanatical, worshipful, longing eyes.
Behold! This is the power of Preservation! This is the Emanator of our Interastral Peace Corporation!!!
"I told you... you are not my opponent." Sensing the power Diamond released, Clara couldn't help but find it somewhat amusing.
"A final warning. Leave now, and no one gets hurt. Otherwise..."
"All of you will die here!"
"Arrogance!" Diamond condensed the power of Preservation into a massive hammer and brought it crashing down towards Clara.
Watching the descending hammer, Clara completely ignored it. With a flicker, she appeared directly in front of Diamond.
Diamond: !
Without hesitation, Clara raised her blade and struck. The violent force shattered the shield around Diamond and slammed him into the ground.
"Cough, cough." Diamond cratered the ground upon impact, the power of Preservation protecting his body and preventing major injury.
"Something's wrong. Something's very wrong. It's not just off, it's off by a factor of eleven." Diamond stood up from the crater, looking at Clara with puzzled eyes.
Everything was too strange. He couldn't sense any power related to Destruction or Nihility emanating from her.
In fact, he couldn't sense any Path energy from her at all.
This was utterly unreasonable. Even from Aeons, one could perceive the corresponding Path energy when they released their power.
So... Diamond understood. Right now, he was probably trapped within an illusion she had created...
An Emanator skilled in creating illusions... was it from Remembrance? Or Elation?
Sparkle... the name didn't sound like someone from Remembrance. It was more fitting for Elation.
Which meant...
"Miss Sparkle, are you a Masked Fool, or a Mourning Actor?" Diamond asked, his expression one of certainty.
Though phrased as a question, Diamond was already convinced that Sparkle was a Masked Fool.
After all, Mourning Actors weren't this... idle.
"Oh?" Hearing this, Clara showed a surprised expression.
"Not bad. Figured it out quite quickly. Seems I underestimated you."
"You flatter me, Miss Sparkle. I have a question I'd like you to answer."
"Ask first, then I'll decide if I feel like answering."
"The Interastral Peace Corporation holds no grudge against the Masked Fools. Why attack the company?"
"Pfft." Clara instantly laughed upon hearing this.
"Why do you think I'm a Masked Fool?"
"The number one reason for attacking the company is, of course, because it's fun."
"The second reason is to boost my own reputation~"
"Think about it. Destroying the Interastral Peace Corporation right in front of the Emanator of Preservation? Once that gets out, my reputation would be through the roof, wouldn't it?"
Clara spread her arms, a wide smile on her face.
"Since you've guessed this is an illusion, you should also realize what state the company is in right now, in reality, shouldn't you?"
Diamond: ...
"Lord Emanator of Preservation, since my objective is complete, this humble girl shall take her leave now~" Clara elegantly curtsied to Diamond.
The next second, the entire world shattered into fragments...
Diamond's consciousness returned to reality, only to see the ravaged ruins of the Interastral Peace Corporation.
"[Stellaron Hunter] Clara, [Masked Fool] Sparkle..." Just thinking of these two names gave Diamond a headache, and he rubbed his temples.
"The Will of Preservation shall never retreat!"
"Everything… for the Amber Lord!"
...
Bonus Scene:
Ding-ding-ding~ Ding-ding-ding~
On a certain bright and sunny morning, our dear Boss Sparkle slowly opened her eyes, sat up, turned off her alarm clock, got out of bed, hummed a little tune, and hopped over to the sink to wash up.
Then~ our Boss Sparkle took out a glass, fetched some milk from the fridge, and poured herself a full cup with great ceremony.
She then sat down on the sofa, picked up the remote, and prepared to turn on the TV to find the day's entertainment~
Bzzzt~
A static sound crackled as the TV slowly turned on. Boss Sparkle took a sip of milk, waiting for the fun to begin.
The next moment...
"Pfft!"
Our Boss Sparkle spat out the milk in her mouth as she saw what was on the screen.
[Interastral Peace Corporation - S-Class Wanted Criminal: [Masked Fool] Sparkle.]
Below the text was a large portrait, and beneath that, a dazzlingly prominent feat.
"[Suspected Emanator of Elation. Single-handedly destroyed the Interastral Peace Corporation headquarters located in Pier Point.]
Sparkle: ???
Our Boss Sparkle blinked a few times, looking somewhat dumbfounded at the content on the TV.
"I became the entertainment?"
...
A/N: An Emanator of Elation isn't normally this strong; it's just Clara who is powerful. Diamond isn't weak either; it's just that his opponent was Clara. Plus, I'm not very good at writing fight scenes, so Diamond got beaten one-sidedly.
The illusion ability was created by Clara using a combination of Elation and Remembrance powers, which is why Diamond didn't notice it at first. Under the enhancement of both powers, the illusion was nearly indistinguishable from reality.
'Those closely involved cannot see clearly; onlookers see more.' It was hard for Diamond to realize. But from the outside looking in, anyone with a bit of knowledge would recognize it as an illusion.
…
T/N: Odachi - is a massive, long Japanese great sword used by samurai in feudal Japan, characterized by blades typically over 90 cm (35 inches) long
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