Chapter 43

Niko lunges at Kurenai. They clash blades three times, then Niko leaps back and throws the boomerangs holstered at her waist—one after another.

"So that's your move, huh."

The boomerangs aren't aimed at Kurenai; they fly wide of her.

(Come back!)

Arcing behind Kurenai, the boomerangs home in on her back.

Kurenai tries to jump sideways—

"High-output mode!!"

Niko extends her saber, cutting off Kurenai's escape with a sweeping slash. She keeps charging forward, discards the energy-drained saber terminal, and swings the saber on her shin.

Two boomerangs from behind, Niko from the front—pincer attack. No time to flee up or sideways.

Perfect. Kurenai smiles.

"Rage, Inferno!!"

Kurenai switches her greatsword Inferno to high-output mode. Its range doesn't increase, but its power skyrockets.

"Same here!!"

Niko shifts the shin saber to high-output mode as well. Like Inferno, it doesn't extend, but its destructive force spikes.

High-output Shin Saber and greatsword crash together in a fierce exchange. Their destructive power is equal.

(Equals is fine! Wait and the boomerangs will cut her down from behind!)

The boomerangs close in on Kurenai's back. At that moment—

"Purge!"

"Wha—!"

Kurenai jettisons the wing unit on her back backward. It shoots away. The boomerangs deflect off the wing unit and veer off in a random direction. At the same time, both Inferno and the Shin Saber leave high-output mode and enter recharge, losing their energy. Kurenai discards the greatsword and tenses her legs.

—I win.

Kurenai is sure of victory.

Niko has lost every weapon and is completely unarmed. But Kurenai still has the sabers on her feet.

"Disappear!"

(Not yet!!)

Kurenai starts to swing her leg, but before she can, Niko thrusts with her thrusters and clamps both legs around Kurenai's waist.

"This is...!"

(A Shiki move! Now the foot sabers can't reach!!)

Niko clenches her remaining right fist and swings, but Kurenai easily pins it with her left hand.

"Tch!!"

"Trying to take me on bare-handed is a hundred years too soon!!!"

Now Kurenai counters. She clenches her right fist and swings at Niko—

—Zan!!!

"Wha...what...!?"

Kurenai couldn't grasp the scene before her eyes.

Before she knew it, a laser saber had pierced her forehead.

"Ha! You didn't see this hand coming!"

Niko was holding a saber in her mouth. She had the saber terminal clenched between her teeth.

That saber was the one she'd been holding in her left hand just before it was severed. Niko had secretly retrieved the saber terminal and hidden it at her throat.

"A mouth saber...!?"

After wrapping her legs around Kurenai, she moved the saber from her throat to her mouth, held the terminal with her teeth, flicked the switch with her tongue, and fired the laser—cleanly piercing Kurenai's forehead.

A human body would have suffocated the moment the terminal blocked the throat. Only a Space Girl's body could pull off such a stunt.

"...You're nuts, you know that!!"

"You're welcome!"

Kurenai's body dissolves into polygons and scatters. Niko spits out the saber terminal.

"*Haaack*! *Haaack*! Even in a game, sticking foreign objects down your throat feels awful."

Winner—Niko.

But—

"Nice battle."

A new visitor enters the bar.

Appearing is a twin-tailed Space Girl carrying six shields.

A shadow crosses Niko's face.

(Tch. No choice.)

Crimson Wings ace—Shinkai Tsubasa.

Even at full strength her win rate is no more than 10%. Wounded like this—

"I never thought Kurenai-chan would lose. Tsubasa really underestimated you."

"Dummy. You're still looking down on me right now!!"

Niko kicks up the saber terminal she spat out, catches it in her right hand, and switches it to high-output mode.

"Oraa!!!"

A full-powered slash.

Tsubasa blocks Niko's single strike with one Aegis, raises the blade of the Aegis in her left hand, and severs Niko's right arm. The remaining Aegises surround Niko on all sides.

With both arms gone, Niko has no way out.

"Farewell."

"...Damn, it's frustrating, but that was beautiful."

Tsubasa fires a laser blast from the cannons mounted on her shields, deleting Niko.

Marshmallow Smile's Niko, retired. Crimson Wings' Kurenai, retired.

The first clash between the two teams ends in a one-for-one exchange.

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