The world has become a frozen wasteland, it's like the worst blizzard ever seen has hit Souya out of nowhere. In one move Vlov has made the battlefield even worse.
The sudden drop of temperature hits me like a truck, it's enough to make me dizzy. I have to put all my strength in holding back from vomiting.
My whole body is shivering, not just from the cold, but also from the strong wind striking at me. It doesn't help that I have an open wound either, soon I will die of hypothermia.
But I don't care about that right now, what matters is if my future harem is okay. Rika should be fine, but... I scan around and find Ciel, she seems alive, even if it's hard to see with this blizzard.
Another thought hits my mind, did Noel leave this place in time? I can't tell how big Vlov's area of destruction was due to this blizzard fucking up my vision, so I can only hope for the best. Noel is a super human, she should be fine if she ran at full speed... That's what I should think right now.
The vampire is panting, I can hear it, even if the Blizzard makes it difficult. "All of you survived again...?" His goal was to kill at least one of us.
This took a lot out of him, I'm sure of it, and it didn't kill anybody... yet. I'll die soon, it's way too cold here, even with my grain consuming his mana on the air. That's why I need to kill him as fast as possible.
Suddenly I feel a sharp pain in my head, I hold my own head with my hand that's still working, dropping my black key to the ground. The world's lines of death are shaking, I'm reaching my limit, soon my brain will shut down.
Ciel glares at the vampire. "You...! How many people will you kill before you're satisfied!?" That's right, there's no doubt that Vlov just ended the life of any survivors that could be found.
He glares right back at Ciel. "As many as it takes, blame yourself for failing to kill me." I'm sure Senpai is already doing that, but she shouldn't be.
I grab the black key I dropped. "Rika, are you ready to take another shot at him?" I will dash at him using Rika as a cover.
The lines twist, they break, they briefly disappear, they reappear. My head will break soon, I have to kill him before I die, either because of hypothermia or because of the Mystic Eyes of Death Perception.
Rika nods. "Yeah, I'm ready... This time I'll begin by firing at him." Rika opens her mouth. She starts concentrating her power, it's a Galick Gun.
Not a bullet, it's a true beam of destruction, the same she used against Arcueid, the vampire had said this could even match the sword of the planet. The only reason Rika hadn't used before was because of collateral damage.
It goes without saying we don't need to worry about that anymore, Vlov has already destroyed everything. In a way he has paved the way towards own defeat.
Both Ciel and Vlov quickly understand what Rika is doing. The vampire has two choices, he can either try to interrupt her beam or he can dodge.
He chooses the first one, even though the second one was better. His bloodthirst nature as a vampire is winning against his strategic mind as a vampire.
There are two ways he can interrupt Rika, either he can use a big element attack or he can slash her with his spear. The elemental attack only works if he catches Rika by surprise, so he only has one true option.
He aims his spear at Rika. The knight will dash yet again, with his thrusters he will be there in a second, then he will pierce Rika's body.
But he cannot simply do that, because Ciel is moving towards him as well. It doesn't even matter whether she reaches him or not either. Senpai swings her whip sword, with it she will make sure Vlov stays in place.
Vlov is aware of that, and so what he does is throw his spear instead. It breaks the sound barrier, flying like the fastest javelin ever thrown.
Senpai gasps. "Shit!" She's in the middle of her attack, so she won't be able to stop it. Honestly even hearing Ciel swear feels weird.
But I haven't moved yet, and I'm close to Rika. So it's my duty to stop this missile that has taken the shape of a spear. At first I think about slowing it down with ice, but that won't work, Vlov spear will definitely pierce right through it.
I'm hit with another headache, my brain is being pushed to the limit, but this time I don't drop my black key. Instead I push my body to the limit and leap into the air.
With my one useful hand I trace a line that's coming at me at supersonic speeds, my instincts work overdrive to make sure I can begin making the cut before the speed even reaches me.
But cutting the spear would not be enough, it would still keep moving forwards, and as such it would hit Rika. I already knew that, so what I cut instead is the line of momentum, I kill movement.
The spear falls uncertain on the ground, it's uncanny how it seemingly just stopped out of nowhere. That is the power of the Mystic Eyes of Death Perception, to make even things that should not happen, happen.
Vlov raises an eyebrow. "What...?" And at the same time he raises his other hand, it's carrying his black sword. He will need to clash against Senpai if he doesn't want to get hit.
The black sword of the knight struggles against the weapon of the executor, Vlov blocks it as expected of someone of his caliber.
Their clash causes a shockwave, it's enough that I'm blown away, both because it's unbelievers powerful and because I'm in the middle of the air. It's good that this happened though, because it made space for Rika.
When I moved to stop the spear I both saved her and inconvenienced her. That's because she can't fire while I'm in front of her, Ciel circumventing this problem by using a long range weapon, but I couldn't do the same.
Thankfully Vlov fixed that problem, he just insists at digging his own grave. Rika takes aim and fires it. "Love Beam!" It's an embarrassing name, but I want Vlov to have an embarrassing death, so it's fine.
Pink light fills the white cold blizzard, the ice floating around melts into nothing the moment it makes contact with Rika's beam. It's undoubtedly made of pure grain, and it's also much more dangerous than what I could output by myself.
Vlov stares in wonder as he faces death for yet another time this night. This immortal has been reminded of his mortality again and again, he is not the apex predator here.
But he isn't weak either, so before I even fall to the ground he stomps the floor with one leg, and fires a blast of fire bellow, and with another hand, the one that isn't holding his sword, he aims upwards and fires a blast of fire.
In one swift movement he has dug a hole, and then thrown himself at that hole, I can't even tell whether the beam made contact or not.
I fall to the ground, my mind crashes. Cold hits me like it had never hit me before as my wounded shoulder makes contact with the frozen ground. My vision is going white, still, I roll and get back up.
I don't have time to think, I don't have time to feel pain. I'll let my instincts of a genetics made hero face Vlov Arkhangel and the uncaring frost, that way I can still move.
Ciel's sword is destroyed, she lost it when it made contact with Rika'd beam, but now she's holding her battery again. "A chance!" She dashes towards the hole.
Rika does the same. "Time to die you walking fridge!" She breaks the sound barrier as she moves, making Vlov's spear fly away. It's not too distant from me now.
Both Rika and Ciel are moving towards the hole Vlov has made and the reason for that is simple, there they can easily crush him, he won't have anywhere to escape.
It's a solid plan, specially since both Ciel and Rika are strong enough to fight Vlov in close quarters, his little explosions won't matter. Though I don't even know if he can make them after he wasted so much energy to turn Souya into Alaska.
But my instincts are telling me they're wrong, their choice is the incorrect one and it will lead to our defeat. The correct choice instead is...
I dash towards Vlov's spear, my black key in hand. "What are you!? Naruto!?" He's pulling the same move he did in the chunin exams. Essentially he's digging his way towards his goal, being as silent as he can be. And with the noise of the blizzard he can be stealthy.
Once I reach the spear, Vlov emerges from the underground, he is extending his hand towards his weapon. And if he gets it he will have the advantage again.
I throw my black key at him, it strikes his shadow, allowing me to reach him just in time. The vampire glares at me. "Did you sniff me out dog?" That's not exactly inaccurate.
Right now I feel like my entire body is working to win this fight, I can hear, smell and see better. Maybe it's because I have never been this close to death before? Hypothermia will kill me soon, I might die even if I kill Vlov.
I glare right back at him. "Of course I did! You stink, corpse!" I am now without a weapon, Vlov realizes that of course.
He moves so fast no human could ever react to it, he will cut me down with his black sword and then grab his spear.
I can see him, I can smell him, I can hear him, I can touch him, I can taste him. Death is the greatest inspiration of them all, a single point appears in Vlov's body and then disappears again.
I do the impossible and dodge his first blow, I aim my fist at his gut and punch him, but just my reinforced fist will not be enough, so I throw enough grain in my hand to make it burst.
There's a chance I will lose my hand, but I need to hit Vlov with all I got, my grain rushes through my body, and then and reaches him the exact time my fist does.
Vlov sounds truly confused. "Are you... drooling?" Of course I am, all my concentration is going into killing you.
A miracle happens, it's both because of the grain and because a rule of the world was just broken. Two things cannot exist in the literal same space, they can be extremely close, but they cannot truly fuse.
My grain and my fist do, space distorts, sparks of light fly, their color is... "Black Flash." I never felt this aware of my surroundings before.
Vlov groans in pain, as my fist tears through him. "Argh!! This isn't enough!" He fights through the pain, I'll now face another slash, but now...
I open my hand that punched through him. "I am Iron Man." And I fire a blast of fire, it acts like a thrusters, it's recoild sending me backwards and freeing me from being stuck inside of Vlov.
Normally I wouldn't be able to use that fire technique so soon, but I just... feel more after the black flash. So reversing his ice was easier now.
I quickly sends a burst of it through the area around me, it struggles to fight Vlov's much more powerful blizzard, quickly disappearing.
Nonetheless I do it again and again, I'm raising my body's temperature. Maybe I won't die of hypothermia after all... But I think my wounded arm is gone for good, hopefully Ciel can heal it... Or Sensei.
Now both Ciel and Rika have noticed Vlov's position, they turn around and give him chase, so never has the time to kill me or take the spear.
With his black sword he parries Ciel and is punched by Rika, with his weapon he parries Rika and is struck by Ciel. Vlov Arkhangel is stuck in a disadvantageous loop.
And yet I hear a noise, a hand rises from the ground, it grabs Vlov's spear and throws at him. At the same moment he doesn't parry anyone and let's himself be hit, with the help of that and his fire he flies towards his spear.
He grabs it midair, landing gracefully to the ground. "Ghouls truly can be life saving..." I see so that's what it was. Vlov ordered a ghoul to throw his spear towards him.
Either he found a body and turned it while he was digging underground, or that ghoul was part of the catacombs, and slowly digged his way out.
Either way it doesn't matter, I extend my hand towards it and send a blast of fire. "I hate zombies." You never know when they're truly dead.
Ciel sighs. "I agree obviously..." Senpai is now in trouble, her weapon is way too clunky to face off against Vlov's spear, and she lost her sword to the Galick Gun.
That's why Vlov rushes towards her, I fire fireballs at him the entire way, but he extinguishes them with his own cold.
He reaches Ciel in a second, Rika defends her. Her fist parries Vlov's black blade and now Ciel must parry his spear.
Vlov stomps and Ciel slips, it's a minuscule thing, but he shifts the terrain with his ice, and because of Ciel's clunky batter she cannot parry his attack.
I scream. "Senpai!" I'm now dashing towards her, but it's too late, because Vlov has now impaled her with his spear.
He frowns. "It's a shame to kill a woman who looks so similar to my wife." Ice shards appear behind Vlov's back.
There's a burst of power around him, Rika has to instinctively shield herself. "Rabbit!" She still tries to swing at Vlov, but it's too late now.
The spear fires a wave of energy and Ciel is sent flying, way, way outside of my vision, the ice shards follow along. Ciel has been taken out of the fight.
I glare at him. "That's it Vampire!" I'm seeing the spot on his body again, he has truly made me angry. But I have to calm myself down, Ciel is immortal, she won't die from this.
Vlov completely ignores me and aims his spear at Rika. "Do you want to experience being hit with enough strength to fly over a kilometer away Queen of Curses?" That's how far you threw Senpai!?
Rika is equally angry as me. "I will bury you a kilometer deep in the ground!" I'm suddenly hit with the thought that she does not know Ciel is immortal, she genuinely thinks she died.
I draw another black key and begin my dash towards Vlov, I can't let him fight Rika alone, not with that spear. I'm using his fire to move as fast as possible.
Vlov and Rika trade blows, the vampire has a harder time breaking through her guard than he did against Ciel, specially since he's so tired. This blizzard and the activation of the spears true power have truly eaten most of his energy.
Vlov growls. "Ten! If only I had ten more...! No, not them! Never them!" I have no idea what he's talking about, and I don't care either. Vlov can scream and act crazy all he wants, I'll put him down like the pest he is.
I finally reach him, he immediately takes this as an opportunity. He parries Rika with his black blade instead of using his lance, that weapon is instead aimed at me.
There is just no way a human will survive this, that's his train of thought, and once he puts me down maybe Rika will go away... I beat him, I can do it again.
I'll show him. "I see it." I move my black key towards the spear, my mind flashes through memories I didn't even know I had. Those are the memories of heroes, something they engraved in their very body and passed down to me. Mystery itself.
I trace a line that goes through the spear, it is cleanly cut in two. A single generic black key has overcome the spear that can take down the Queen of Curses.
Vlov's eyes widen in disbelief. "The Mystic Eyes of Death Perception...!" He has finally realized that I'm the true danger here, I can kill him at any moment.
Vlov quickly backsteps, he tries backhanding me and he succeeds. My glasses fall of my face and I can see him visibly calm down.
He turns around to so he can keep facing Rika, confident I am now useless, he realized my power came from the glasses he just destroyed.
My head feels like it's about to explode, I have just been hit by the might of a Dead Apostle Ancestor. I should be dead, I definitely should be dead, or at least I should be out of the fight.
Kill this vampire.
I grin. "Orders are orders!" I feel a second wind coming from somewhere, and keep attacking Vlov. I'll kill him for sure, that's because even though he knocked my glasses away...
I never stopped seeing lines of death.
He looks at me and stops blocking Rika. "This chill...!" He realized it, and now he's going to cut me down with his black blade.
An arrow hits his hand, he drops his weapon, it's Senpai, it's definitely her. She sniped his hand from more than a kilometer of distance.
I see a point. "What passed through your mind that you decided to ignore your killer, vampire?" I stab his point with my black key.
I do not miss. Vlov Arkhangel dies.
AN: Vlov is dead! Russians aren't allowed in japan!
Honestly this fight went for way longer than originally planned, but I just kept getting new ideas for action scenes... Hopefully it was cool enough for the death of the mini-boss of Tsukihime.