Editing Seirei Tsukai no Blade Dance:Volume20 Chapter8 (section)

===Part 7===

Blades clashed, the blinding light of divine power swept across all surroundings.

Facing the Holy Lord's Deus Ira, Kamito unleashed Last Strike, the ultimate technique of the Absolute Blade Arts.

This was the ultimate countering sword skill that reflected the force of an attack by reading the enemy's flow of divine power.

However&mdash;

"O-Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhh!"

Plink&mdash;

A crack appeared on the blade of the Demon Slayer while it was blocking Terminus Est.

(...! Est!)

&mdash;Activation of Last Strike had not failed.

However, it could not prevail against Terminus Est's overwhelming destructive power.

A shower of sparks. If the blades continued to clash, Est was going to shatter&mdash;!

That hint of hesitation disrupted Kamito's divine power.

"...!"

The light of Terminus Est expanded all at once.

The surging torrent of light engulfed Kamito, sending his entire body flying.

"&mdash;Cough... Huff...!"

Kamito was sent smashing hard into the Holy Lord Palace's barrier. After coughing a great mouthful of blood, he lay collapsed, unable to get up.

"...Damn it...!"

Kamito instantly looked at the elemental waffen in both hands.

&mdash;The Demon Slayer was not shattered. Only a crack had appeared on the blade.

He breathed a sigh of relief. However, his fingers gripping the hilt could no longer exert any strength.

His view was shaking. He guessed that he had broken many bones.

"Not shattering is impressive already, for an impostor."

Looking down at Kamito who was collapsed on the floor, the Holy Lord spoke.

"...Like I said, she's not an impostor...!"

Spitting out the blood in his mouth, Kamito glared back at the Holy Lord.

Divine power of darkness surged to cover him entirely and began to repair his injured body.

...But it was not fast enough. The Holy Lord was slowly walking over.

Suddenly, for some reason, the Sacred Maiden halted in the middle of the great hall.

"...?"

"Look, the Water Elemental Lord is about to turn into the last Gate."

She spread her arms, looked up into the sky, as though offering a blessing.

"...Wh-at...?"

With slow movements, Kamito summoned all his strength to lift his head.

Only to see that the Water Elemental Lord's throne, covered by Otherworldly Darkness, was gradually turning into a pillar of light.

If that pillar of light were to cause the crack int he sky to expand&mdash;

The Holy Lord would presumably be able to connect with the being on the other side of the crack.

(...Don't think... you can... succeed...!)

Gripping the hilts of his two swords, Kamito stood up.

"Regrettably, it is over, Ren Ashbell."

With a calm smile, the Holy Lord reached out to the final Gate.

Just then...

"What?"

The Holy Lord's movements suddenly paused.

"&mdash;The Elemental Lords have recovered stability?"

"Huh?"

Kamito frowned too&mdash;

Soon, he figured out what those words meant.

The pillars of light piercing the crack in the sky weakened in brightness.

(...What is going on?)

Is it actually possible for the Elemental Lords, corrupted by Otherworldly Darkness, to calm down?

"...I see. So it is the work of the Queens&mdash;"

The Holy Lord muttered. There was an element of anxiety in the Sacred Maiden's voice.

Kamito did not understand what her words meant.

Neither did he know that numerous princess maidens in the human realm had prayed, causing the Elemental Lords to regain a shred of sanity. But&mdash;

"...Looks like there's still hope, Alexandros."

Kamito grinned fearlessly.

"No, this is merely stalling for time. The Otherworldly Darkness will soon corrupt the Gate."

The Holy Lord declared coldly.

"...Stalling for time... Is good enough&mdash;"

The divine power of darkness covering Kamito's entire body surged violently.

"So you have yet to give up? It is futile, humans cannot win against the Elemental Lords."

Saying that, the Holy Lord readied Terminus Est in a stance.

(...The Absolute Blade's ultimate move, Last Strike, didn't work&mdash;)

The ultimate spirit weapon could not be defeated using Kamito's Absolute Blade Arts alone.

(What should I do&mdash;?)

Just as Kamito gritted his teeth...

'&mdash;O adorable child, would you like to listen to me and take a gamble?'

(&mdash;Huh?)

A voice that was neither Est's nor Restia's sounded in his mind.
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