Black and Silver

To describe the woman named Carla Raparb Uslan with words, she was a perfect human.

First was her beautiful appearance. In addition to the hue of her blue eyes and magnificent silvery hair, her expression was a faint smile. When normal humans met her for the first time, they would rub their eyes in disbelief of her existence.

From her thin neck and shoulders, her chest wasn't humble yet neither was it too abundant. And from her thin waist extended graceful and long, disciplined legs. Not emphasizing sex appeal with her chest, she was an existence that existed in perfect harmony.

If you thought it was just her looks, she was also incredible on the inside.

Her skill in the sword was at the peak. The Great Sage Azelford himself admitted her skill in magic, saying it was above even his own. She possesses extensive knowledge and expertise, and even her personality could be said to be able to restrain the queen and her son, the prince.

Though now that she had killed a dragon she is often called the Sage Knight of Silver, people used to call her a saint before that.

The reason why is that she can use revival magic.

For someone that can use revival magic in this world, they could only be called a god.

Though in truth god dragons could use it as well, most people didn't know that.

Carla should meet the requirements to some extent, so she can use revival magic.

"So, even if you fight against Carla and die, we will abide by the next requirement."

"Hold up, why are you assuming I'm going to be defeated?"

"I'm not saying it's a certainty, but Carla has killed a dragon. I'm just preparing for the worst case scenario."

Guinevere smiled as she laughed. Right now, she was on the palm of a huge golem.

They were currently at Manesh's outskirtting plains. This was the area where that dragon was killed. The name of the place was now [The Dragonslayer's Wasteland].

Here and there were craters, along with scattered bits of vitrified rock. In a place like that, two women stood still. There was also a golem.

Ria wore her usual black leather armor, Carla wore knight armor that was the same color as her hair, made from mithril. Guinevere was in horse riding clothing.

Although it was a golem, it seemed that its strong point was in underwater combat.

"First of all, don't damage the upper half of the head. The brain must remain."

Guinevere explained various things, but it all went in one ear and out the other for Ria.

"In short, pierces and slashes are fine, but blowing them entirely away with magic is no good!"

It would've been fine if she just said that to start with.

"By the way, if I make a mistake and kill her, is there someone else who could use revival magic?"

Ria asked about what would happen if the opposite happened.

"As soon as my heart stops beating, I will revive."

As expected, a considerable opponent.

With her Gift, even if several of her arms and legs were cut off she'd still be fine, so it'd probably be alright to go all out.

"Incidentally, since Carla won't die even if you stab her through the heart, it's fine to be at ease."

Amazing isn't it, Dragon's Bloodline.

Guinevere, who was on the golem, stood on the opposite side of Carla and said something. Though it wasn't impossible to hear if she strained her ears, Ria thought it'd probably be more interesting if she didn't hear what the strategy was.

A little while later the golem moved away from Carla, taking a sufficient distance. Its back opened and Guinevere boarded it.

That was unexpected, golems of the type where humans boarded them didn't exist in this world. The reason was similar to what it was in Ria's previous life, there was no practical use for a human to board a robot. Although there were power suit-type magic armor, it wasn't common.

For Guinevere's golem, she herself must have thought it up, designed it, and manufactured it. Despite being a queen that seemed busy, it appeared she had quite a lot of time.

 

*

 

"So then, go and start~"

Together with Guinevere's magnified voice, a fireball shot into the sky. It exploded, signaling the start of the fight.

Closing the distance for now, Ria kicked off the ground.

Carla did the same.

Skimming over the ground, she came flying.

It was unexpected. According to what she heard from Guinevere, she knew that it was more advantageous for her to attack from long range with magic.

After countless feints, there was a single sword attack. The guards of the sword and katana approached each other.

Engaging against Nagasone Kotetsu was a sword that had once been called a holy sword. Now, it was the national treasure sword called the Dragon Destroying

Sword Ekudra.

"Why close combat?"

Uneasy, Ria asked.

"So that I can end this without killing you."

"Don't look down on me."

After just a short time of exchanging blows, Ria saw through her.

Carla's Swordplay Skill was level eight. Judging from that, it was probably an even match. With her ability values, as well as her Gifts, it was definitely an even match.

However, that was if you looked at each element individually. If you put them together, their difference was clear.

Mixing in advanced feints, she performed a quick and precise attack.

However, it was overwhelmingly light.

Light to the point you wouldn't know if it could kill a person.

"You haven't killed many people, have you?"

"I think I've got quite a bit of combat experience myself, but…"

They had the composure to have a chat in the middle of a fight.

"… I see."

She had a chance to answer.

What was this fight to Carla? It was a suppression. The only thing she could call a fight was the fight against that dragon. The rest of her experience in battle was entirely cultivated through training. All because of the talent named Gift.

Although Ria was given almost as much power by it, the sheer amount of blood she vomited in her previous life was different. She had been surprised when she really did piss blood.

With the extreme effort put into her life as an ordinary person going through trial and error, the ability of her body could only be described as prodigal. That was Ria's strength.

"White Prison Flame."

Carla invoked a magic with no chant, attacking Ria.

And it wasn't a single thing, it came from all directions.

Ria dodged and slashed them apart with her katana. Even so, she couldn't avoid all of them and received a direct hit.

But she wasn't damaged. An attack that is merely hot couldn't affect Ria in the least.

After that, Ria defended against attacks of innumerable attributes many times.

 

*

 

"Good gracious, incredible."

"Yeah, really."

In a mountainous region far from the battlefield.

Two figured stood there.

At a distance where the two fighting figures looked as large as grains of rice, Haruto and Ferna were walking.

Both were wearing sand colored mantles. Goods that reduced the effectiveness of magic, Haruto prepared them just in case.

Ferna could use far sight magic and Haruto watched them with binoculars he took out from his breast pocket.

Haruto answered Ferna's glance at him with a smile.

"They were developed by my company, the state of the art binoculars."

They didn't use magic, entirely products of technology.

If you were watching a magic battle, there were many things that could obstruct far sight magic.

He placed them to his eyes, but immediately smiled wryly and put them away.

"They're moving too fast for me to see. Ferna-san, please explain.

"Sure."

Ferna explained that Carla was moving as she repeatedly activated terrifically advanced magic.

That was as accurate an explanation she could give. Although she was exposing a part of her power, she still hadn't been noticed yet.

 

*

 

A man and woman were also watching.

Standing next to the robo-golem was Irina and Serge.

To answer everyone's desire of watching Ria and Carla's fight, Serge was sending them a reflection of it with space-time magic, but his mind was already starting to break.

Magic that Lulu and Serge would have had to put their all into to use was being rapidly fired by Carla as though they were simple.

Ria was nullifying her magic, as well as slicing through them and taking them head on.

Super frightening.

What the heck was with this monstrous battle?

"Irina, seriously defend me. If something flies over here, it really might kill me."

Even a single stray attack was easily enough to make a small crater.

It'd instantly break through the magic bulwarks Serge had set up.

"Got it~"

Although Irina said it nonchalantly, she was properly working diligently.

Clad in orichalcum armor, Irina's body emanated a golden dragon fighting spirit, defending Serge.

(Even so…)

Serge thought as he looked to his side. The queen turned the golem's face to one direction.

Even though she was defended by the golem's armor, the queen was in such a place as well. Her retainers tolerated it.

Serge was slowly understanding just how futile it would have been to try and stop her, at least a little.

 

*

 

Carla was hesitating.

She was hesitating over how she should deal with the strength of this person named Ria.

She didn't use magic meant for one on one combat at all. In killing with a sword, her one on one skills were above her own.

Then maybe she should go all out with her magic?

She never thought that she would have to go all out with her magic against a normal human opponent.

However, her hesitation disappeared all at once.

Ria was able to stop all of her attacks.

Without seeing it herself, Carla would never have believed it.

Opening the distance between them, Carla took to the sky.

Ria prepared herself on the ground in anticipation. It wasn't that she couldn't use magic to fly into the air, but she wasn't that good at it.

Then, Carla's voice echoed out.

 

[— Confined —]

This was the first time Ria heard Carla chant.

Meanwhile, her body rapidly increased in weight. She wasn't able to move.

[— To the depths of the dark ground —]

Magic that manipulated gravity, and moreover repeated many times over. She could feel the magical power being compressed.

(This is bad—)

Ria thought.

Perhaps Carla thought that Ria was calm. Her confidence in her was that weighty.

She erected a multi-layered barrier with Ria at its center.

This was used to confine Ria, but that wasn't all.

She was about to bring about complete destruction to that limited space

(This is seriously bad—)

Then, Carla finished her chant.

[— Thermonuclear Darkness Exploding Hell —]

 

The multi-layered barrier's radius was several hundred meters with Ria at its heart.

It was something that could defend against a dragon's breath.

Countless nuclear explosions were compressed inside of that.

Usually, it would take several dozen mages using a ceremony to use this magic.

Able to destroy even a dragon, it was the final measure the human race had.

However, even so, Carla could feel Ria's presence.

A giant crater had formed from the wrecked surface.

Though heat was seeping into the sky, the rocks still boiled like magma.

From that pond of magma, Ria jumped out.

When she knew that she wasn't able to escape, she chose to descend into the ground. By using the bath magic she'd trained, she went as far down into the ground as she was able.

The gigantic layer of bedrock was able to defend against the nuclear explosion. Her resistance was somehow effective for the heat generated.

"That… was hot…"

The stuff clinging to her armor cracked and fell as she brushed it away with her hands.

"Hooooooot!!!"

Ria flew towards Carla.

On her back were translucent black wings.

This was her newly released [Flight] Gift.

Carla stopped Ria's slash.

However, their trades were one-sided.

All of her Gifts were released and she was being strengthened by magic.

Even so, Carla was unable to gain the upper hand against Ria.

Then, Ria smiled.

Each time their swords clashed, she knew that she was growing stronger.

When she was with Carla, she felt like she could rise to any height.

Yes, this is what she wished for.

Letting out a remarkably sharp blow, Carla took a distance from Ria.

Then, she sheathed her sword and raised her hands to the sky.

"Eh? Surely you aren't giving up?"

Even though she'd used that magic a moment before, Carla still had magical power left.

From now on would be the real thing.

"No. However, this is the end."

Carla prepared her magical power.

Composing it in her mind, this was her strongest magic.

At this point, it was dubious as to whether this could be called magic. It was the power of a god.

 

[— Spirits of the ground and sky, abide by god's will, carry out your duty —]

 

[— Destruction of Heaven and Earth —]

 

There, light was born.

 

*

 

That light became a pillar, swallowing everything.

The ground crumbled, disappearing.

The sky disintegrated, scattering into space.

Exactly as it sounded, it was a power to destroy heaven and earth.

Inside of the light, Ria herself was wrapped in darkness.

A darkness dragon's fighting spirit. This was a dragon's power, the power to oppose a god.

"Uaaaaaah!"

Roar. Fighting against the power of a god, Ria rushed out of the light.

Before her was Carla.

Crashing into her with great force, the two fell to the ground.

Underneath Ria's arms, Carla.

As though being restrained by Ria's arms, Carla.

That flawless beauty collapsed.

Her hair in disorder, her cheeks red, and sweat on her brow.

An angel had fallen. It was that kind of an immoral feeling.

"It's my loss."

Carla's breathing was rough, saying just that.

"Really, don't you still have a trump card?"

"No, that last one was it. I didn't finish using it in the fight, but the damage to the surroundings is huge."

"Yeah, that's for sure."

There was a brand new supersized crater. If the battlefield wasn't restricted, just how much damage would have occurred?

"Winner's rights. For you, I staked my life."

Incidentally, this was that kind of fight.

Under Ria's body, Carla stirred.

Her body was soft. Ria couldn't figure out where she hid that power in it.

"Well then, a kiss…"

Carla didn't show her surprise on her face from the request, instead shutting her eyes.

Seeing her pink lips, Ria trembled fervently—

—But in the end, she only managed to kiss her cheek.