4
Ram gradually increased the heat of her body, removing the limiters in stages.
Her blood boiled and the muscles in her slender body undulated.
It was a girl’s body that may have felt soft, fragile, and unreliable to the touch, but the blood that flowed inside her veins, and the flesh and bones that made her, were those of one of the strongest races in the world.
The return of the Oni god, the warrior hailed as greatest masterpiece of all…
“That’s our big sister! Ahh, how wonderful! So radiant! The sister Rem could never hope to match, no matter how she tried!”
“Don’t drool. It is uncouth. And do not compare me to anyone.”
“Heh, why is that?”
“It should be obvious. I don’t need anything more than the title of Rem’s big sister.”
Ram kicked off the stairs, descending in a flash with a preemptive attack, but Lye evaded with a big leap backward.
She unleashed a series of ferocious attacks using her arms and legs, any of which would shred skin, break bones, and liquefy internal organs.
It wasn’t a martial art that relied on just simple physical abilities or techniques. If it was just pure finesse, then Lye would have been able to handle it by re-creating some of the countless techniques he had access to from the memories of those he had consumed.
However, there was a clear difference between what Ram was doing and something simple like that.
“ ”
She surged forward, freely controlling the acceleration of each and every knee and elbow she threw at the Archbishop. Cladding herself in her specialty wind magic, she was subtly weaving deception into the middle of her combat.
She was manipulating Lye’s perceptions by accelerating or decelerating attacks with wind. And to top it off, she was using the wind to spread her presence in all directions, slipping her attacks into his dead angles with swift motions, unleashing with multiple deadly blows.
“Hah! Can’t get enough of this!”
Just barely dodging her attacks, Lye cheered happily.
He was bleeding from his right cheek, and his long, disheveled brown hair danced wildly, but Gluttony was apparently enjoying the comparison of skills.
“Grudges are a spice we can’t get enough of! The bitterness of those shrewd tricks! You are the perfect dish for a gourmet like us, sister!”
Lye grinned condescendingly as they descended the spiral stairs, constantly changing places.
Saliva dripping from his open mouth, he hit Ram’s wand with the two swords in his hands and opened some space between them.
“Yes, nice, great, delicious, delectable, more, more! Gluttony! Gluttony!”
“ ”
“The scent of that rage is divine! Someone who hates us specifically this much…what sort of flavor will you have?!”
Clapping his hands, he shuddered in anticipation of an incomprehensible pleasure. Watching that, Ram exhaled a deep breath, and confirmed her body’s condition.
“It is still a far cry from my original form, but…”
She would never let it show, but Ram was genuinely struck with wonder.
“I know myself better than anyone” was a pat phrase used by a certain type of person who didn’t actually understand themselves, but unlike those fools, Ram really did have a complete grasp of her own self.
Ever since she lost her horn, she always felt overwhelmed by a terrible burden. Because of that, she had consciously placed certain limiters on herself.
Ordinarily, during the times when she was working as a servant, all those limiters were in place. But there were times when incidents might happen, situations where she would have to use magic to resolve a situation. In those moments, she would release one of the limiters, allowing herself to use the bare minimum amount of magic. And in situations where even that wasn’t enough, she would undo the second limiter. In that state, she could wield maybe a fifth of her original abilities, though anything she did would have to be resolved quickly.
The battle with Garfiel in the Sanctuary a year and a half ago had been one such instance.
That was the full strength Ram could wield as a hornless. She was confident that any more and her body would break, unable to endure the strain.
And right now, Ram was attempting to unlock one more level of that double-edged strength.
“ ”
For an instant, Ram felt a rare instance of hesitation in her chest.
As stated, Ram perfectly understood her own self. In all her battles up to this point, the recoil from the combat would cause a head-splitting pain and leave her bleeding from the eyes or nose, and she would have to be ready to not be able to move her body for a while when she was done.
But there was none of that. Because it was all flowing into Subaru, who was sharing her fate.
“…If I take too long, Barusu will die.”
If things were going according to plan, Subaru would be running around, trying to deal with the rampaging Shaula and the onrushing horde of demon beasts. He would have Beatrice and likely Meili with him. Emilia, who made her memories ache, would be heading to the top floor of the tower and fighting on her own there.
Mysteriously, she couldn’t help concerning herself with the actions of that earnest, silver-haired girl. She was surely someone who had given her plenty of trouble before her name was stolen.
Everyone was so unreliable without Ram around.
And so…
“Hold on like your life depends on it, Barusu. Don’t make Rem cry.”
With that, Ram released her third limiter for the first time in ten years.
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